Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Potential Employers are Asking for Social Media Passwords

It is becoming more and more common for potential employers to ask job applicants for their social media passwords (especially Facebook passwords) as part of the vetting process.  Employers want to get a little more insight into the applicant before offering them a position.  Public agencies use the information to make sure that there are no gang connections or photos of illegal activity (especially for law enforcement applicants).  Can they do that?

Yes, they can.  Interview questions that are discriminatory in nature are prohibited.  Asking for a Facebook password is not discriminatory in nature.  Does that mean that the candidate must supply the password?  No.  Of course, not supplying the password may be a deal breaker and you risk not getting the job. Given that even "deleted" Facebook photos remain on Facebook's servers for three years, the employer may be able to access those photos.  Granted, to access them, the employer would need the direct link address.  Several Facebook users see this as a violation of their privacy rights, but is it private when the user posted the photo themselves in the first place?  There has been many recent articles regarding the privacy policy of several social media sites.  So, a Facebook user should not expect much to be private when they post it.

However, that does not necessarily mean that a prospective employee should feel compelled to provide their password.  This is another warning to be careful what you post on social media sites.

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