April 11th, 2012Comments (0)

Facebook Access: The Private Side to our Public Persona by Ginny Woodcock

Last month, the Associated Press created a bit of mayhem when it reported a recent surge in employers seeking access to employees’ Facebook profiles. The story was broadcast on countless news outlets and posted all over social media sites.

In one case, the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services asked job applicants to submit their social network username and password in order to conduct a background check. The American Civil Liberties Union complained about this incident, so now the Department only requests that applicants log in “voluntarily” during the interview.

This issue has stirred so much controversy that it prompted a few congressmen to craft an amendment that would ban companies from asking current or potential employees for social media passwords. U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal insisted that this practice is an unreasonable invasion of privacy; however, the amendment was ultimately defeated on March 28.

Facebook officials immediately responded to the news by saying that this type of action is an invasion of privacy and threatened to take legal action against companies that ask for an applicant’s or employee’s password. “We’ve made it a violation of Facebook’s Statement of Rights and Responsibilities to share or solicit a Facebook password,” stated Erin Egan, Facebook’s chief privacy officer.

How would you respond if your current or future employer asked for your Facebook password? Would you hand over your login information, or would you turn down the position to keep your privacy?

Personally, I feel that asking for my username and password would be a violation of privacy. I wouldn’t mind logging in and allowing a perspective employer to view my profile, however, I would be uncomfortable sharing my login information. Many social network users, as do I, believe that there is a private side to our public persona, and we are entitled to adjust the privacy settings however we desire. Users should have the choice as to whether or not their employers, among others, have access to their content.

Asking for, as opposed to demanding, social media passwords can still create a sticky situation. What happens if an employer asks but the applicant or employee refuses to give out the information? In the case of Kimberly Hester, she was fired. After rumors of having posted a humorous picture, a school administrator asked the teacher’s aid for her password and she refused. The school decided to suspend and eventually fire her for the refusal.

Since social media acts as an extension of our identity, it has always been important for us to use discretion when posting statuses, comment and photos. Now that some employers are requesting access to our virtual identity, we must closely monitor our profiles and potentially be ready to hand over login information at any given time.

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