Career counselors, resume writers, HR directors, labor lawyers and job-seekers:
If you want publicity, jump head-first into the debate over whether companies should be asking job applicants to turn over passwords to their accounts on Facebook and other social media sites.
Even better, explain how you’re advising job applicants. Should they do as they’re told, so they stay in the running for a coveted job? Or shouldn’t they, and risk making the final cut?
Blogs, news articles and Facebook are all buzzing about this story, and the mainstream media is embracing it. Check out these stories from CBS MoneyWatch, The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post.
Violates Facebook’s Terms of Service
The Post article mentions that giving out Facebook login information violates the social network’s terms of service, so that might me a a good excuse for job applicants to use if they refuse to turn over the information. Legal experts said the legality of asking for passwords is uncertain.
The article also said that the Department of Justice regards it as a federal crime to enter a social networking site in violation of the terms of service, but during recent congressional testimony, the agency said such violations would not be prosecuted.
I’m not an attorney or a career counselor. So what you tell the media is up to you. But this is the perfect opportunity to be “the local angle” to a national story. Even if the issue is creating angst and uncertainty for you, and you’re willing to go on record saying that, publicity could be yours for the asking.
You also might consider telling job applicants that, before they apply for a job, how to find out if companies ask for passwords during job interviews.
Media Outlets Worth Pitching
Here are media outets to consider pitching:
- Your local newspapers. You’re the “local angle” to a national story. Call the city desk and offer to be a a source. You can also write a letter to the editor.
- Local TV stations.
- Drive-time radio shows. This is a GREAT topic for radio because it’s so controversial.
- Blogs. You might even consider pitching a guest blog post, assuming you have enough to say about the topic.
- Trade magazines
If you’re a career counselor or a labor lawyer, are you offering yourself to the media? How else have you piggybacked onto this national story?
Are you unemployed and willing to turn over your passwords? If so, this can be fabulous publicity for you, too, and a chance to get in front of potential employers. Are you willing?
The Comments section awaits.
I would advise my coaching and resume clients to decline. What’s next, strong-arming to get passwords to online bank accounts? This is clearly an invasion of privacy. When I signed up for my Facebook account, I agreed to their terms of service, and I don’t recall anything in Facebook’s terms of agreement that gives anyone else authority to access my account.
Personally, I’d be very wary of an employer that feels the need to know my personal business, who my friends are or what I do legally on my own free time. The employment contract is not a one-way agreement; it requires two to tango. Employers have a right to return on investment; they have no rights to their employees’ intrinsic rights and freedoms.
Ellie, I understand your concern. Thanks for weighing in and joining the army of people who are criticizing companies for even asking.
I agree totally with Ellie. A potential employer has no right to ask for the complete examination of a candidate’s social/family and religious or political life, which a candidate may display to friends and family on Facebook. Beyond being borderline illegal, it’s morally reprehensible.
Not that that may stop some employers from snooping anyway by “friending” friends of the potential employee to get at at least some of the juicy details. Because of that possibility, I advise everyone to pay special attention to their privacy settings, and to check that area of the site on occasion to be sure FB hasn’t modified the permissions structure since they last visited.
Also, I wanted to thank you, Joan, for designing such a useful way to help forward the discussion on this issue, and simultaneously act as a model for showing us small ways to accomplish our own (and possibly your) publicity goals. A very nice win-win.
Thanks for contributing to the conversation, Kate. I’m presenting a session at Career Directors International’s Global Summit in October in San Diego, and this Facebook issue caught my attention.