Bots, Credentials, and Piracy: The Library-Driven Threats CISOs Can’t Ignore

Thursday, April 30, 2026 | 2:15PM–3:00PM PT | California Ballroom D, Second Floor
Session Type: Breakout Session
Delivery Format: Presentation/Panel
Did you know that university libraries provide unexpected risks to your institutions? This session provides IT security leaders with a clear view of how library ecosystems—books, journals, publisher platforms, and institutional repositories—become vectors for risk and how those risks can ripple through IT operations. Digital libraries expand access to knowledge but also broaden the attack surface available to bad actors. We will cover the evolving threat landscape, from malicious behavior targeting e-resources to piracy, and from basic PDF misuse detection to modern approaches that monitor bot activity, requests, sessions, and other signals to detect misuse before content is downloaded. We will analyze the dynamics of publisher platform access, discuss the most significant risks, and present practical, collaborative solutions that require joint effort between IT security and library leadership. The talk will also look at GenAI’s potential to complicate these efforts and emphasize the need for proactive, cross-disciplinary discussions and governance to stay ahead. Attendees will leave with a practical understanding of where their libraries are exposed, how to engage stakeholders, and concrete steps to reduce risk while preserving legitimate access to essential scholarly resources.

Presenters

  • Sari Frances

    Director of Content Protection Services, Scholarly Networks Security Initiative (SNSI)

  • Andrew White

    Director, Library Information Services, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Resources & Downloads

  • Bots Credentials and Piracy Presentation

    Updated on 4/22/2026