Opinions on Employers looking a FB and MySpace

Should employer's be able to use your facebook or myspace against you?

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Newberry13

Newberry13

Senior Member
Member
May 21, 2010
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SC, USA
I'm just wondering what everyone's opinions are concerning employers looking at an applicants facebook and myspace as part of the background check? Lets even go one further. What about employers monitoring your facebook and myspace after you've been hired? Should we maybe have limits on what content you can/can't use as a determining factor?


The reason I bring this up is this:


http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/connecticut/feds-settle-case-of-woman-fired-over-facebook-site


This was on Zoll's facebook page.
 
My thoughts are that as long as you are not disclosing work sensitve information, it should be off limits for employers to use it against you.


As far as employers using Facebook to learn about your character prior to hiring you, I'm pretty sure some are already doing that. I don't really agree with that but then again, if you know how to set your privacy options, there's not a whole lot to worry about.
 
My full time dept has a "social media policy". I had my FB profile set to private on everything-only friends could see my posts. I had a pic of one of our officers holding marihuana plants from a grow operations we discovered-he had this shit-eating grin that was great! Well, I got counseled, because obviously one of my "friends", wasn't a friend. We are prohibited from posting while on duty, posting work/case related information, photos from work, or photos in uniform. Its gotten a little crazy honestly. I'm our union director, and our attorney has advised us against posting any mention of where we even work. In todays day, I fully agree now-no work information or pics online. Everything and anything can be twisted, to make you look bad in court, or the media.


In regards to pre-employment BI, our guys use it to check on potential hires. I don't want to post tactics, but they've gotten wall posts on folks who had "private" profiles.
 
ParkPiggy said:
I don't want to post tactics, but they've gotten wall posts on folks who had "private" profiles.
Click to expand...


Why wouldn't you post tatics you know they use to help others learn how to keep their information more secure?
 
We too have a social policy. Just to be sure, I very rarely, if ever, post anything work related. If anything, it's a very generic phrase, like "when it rains, it pours" referring to a very busy night, or 'uffda". other than that, nothing. CYA. :thumbsup: Just keep work out of it.
 
you have to be my friend to look at anything on my page to see posts and pictures. everything thats visible to everyone is the same as id show my mother so i have nothing to hide
 
I like my right to privacy as much if not more than most people, but by the same token, if you post something on the internet that may endanger your employment, future or current, it's on you. I'm incredibly careful who I accept as friends if I don't actually know the person very well, because what they have on their page could very well reflect poorly on me. Plus my profile is locked down to the nth degree, so unless I get another "friend" that decides to show my profile to someone who doesn't need to see it, I'm good.
 
I do not use any social networking sites. My employer has policy in place regarding social networking sites with regard to usage on duty and any posts that reflect poorly or depicts the agency.


Having said that, your right to privacy ends when you log on to the internet and start posting things. This is no different than walking down a public street. So with that in mind, be careful what you put out in cyberspace.


Stay safe,


Chris
 
I don't think they should, but i currently don't have a Facebook anymore due to the fact that i lost my job over it. I posted a comment about work and someone turned the comment into HR and they let me go. They apparently had a social media policy that says you can't talk about, post pictures, or videos of work on Facebook, so i lost my job. Which really sucks because i was a trainer and was making great money was working 10+ hours of double time a week.
 
While I understand the reasoning behind it (airing dirty laundry), I don't necessarily agree with the polices, as I think it infringes on the 1st amend. However, I need moeny and a job, so I bite my tounge, speak my mind about work stuff in person, and, as posted above, leave work off FB.
 
as long as what you post or put pictures of on your social site is not sensitive material related to your work or something illegal i do not think employers should have anything to say. but remember it is the internet so no matter what privacy settings you set there is a way around everything and posts and pictures do not go away just because you deleted them from your page. i can still find stuff online from a facebook and or myspace page i had and deleted years ago. everything gets saved to the servers and be recovered up to 10 years later
 
Use some sense when posting - if you wouldn't be embarrassed or ashamed to say it publicly, it's probably OK to post. If you have any hesitation...well, your gut instinct is often the way to go.


I also follow some of the opsec related groups on there, and they have some good practices, as well as instructing you on how to better secure your account.
 
Lt.214 said:
your right to privacy ends when you log on to the internet and start posting things. This is no different than walking down a public street. So with that in mind, be careful what you put out in cyberspace.
Click to expand...


as much as I'm not a fan of it, I agree. when you post on the internet, you have to assume it's public information. thus, if an employer sees it, they get an idea of who you are outside of work. to a lot of employers, this makes a difference, as it reflects on them, and I can't argue with that. For example ... if the pastor of your local church posted pictures on his FB page of a wild party he went to in some other state while on vacation, do you not think that that information would still reflect on his role as a pastor (depending on the context of why he was at the party, and what the pictures indicated and why they were posted, that could be good or bad - chaplains, nod and agree here :) , but as noted above, could still be twisted to be bad even if it wasn't) I don't really like the idea of employers digging into personal profiles on networking sites. But, at the same time, when they do a background check, they dig into every OTHER personal area of my life, so why is that any different? When I was hired at PD Dispatch, they asked me about a 10 year old bounced check. That's digging into some personal stuff, the pics I post on FB are available to a lot more people than that check. So, don't post anything on the internet that casts you in a light that you do not want the world to see you in, and you're ok ... Kind of like, it really bugs me when people see a cop and slam on their brakes - by that time, if he wants you, he's already got you! Pick a speed that you feel comfortable with, and drive it - then it doesn't matter if there's a cop around or not ... Same principal - pick the image you want the world to have of you, and post that image - then it doesn't matter if your employer looks at your page or not ...
 
stp354 said:
Why wouldn't you post tatics you know they use to help others learn how to keep their information more secure?
Click to expand...

Have to agree, thats some bullshit that parkpiggy wont post information to help others.


Anyhow, I have my profile set to friends only, but if you post on something like a businesses wall, its fair game. I just entered my first and last name in Google and it returned a few wall posts. Anyone know of a way to block that?


I think facebook posts should be off limits as long as it doesnt identify your employer (mine does not) and have anything to do with your employer.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Is it that hard to figure out? Your profile is set to private, and the only person who can see it is your friends. So, the only person who can see it would have to be accepted as a FRIEND. It wasn't any major secret on how PDs get info on guys during their BIs.


So, if you are in any type of hiring process, and get friend request from people you do not know, do not accept them!
 
ParkPiggy said:
Is it that hard to figure out? Your profile is set to private, and the only person who can see it is your friends. So, the only person who can see it would have to be accepted as a FRIEND. It wasn't any major secret on how PDs get info on guys during their BIs.

So, if you are in any type of hiring process, and get friend request from people you do not know, do not accept them!
Click to expand...


Thats stupid. You made it out to be some sort of secret process.
 
ParkPiggy said:
Is it that hard to figure out? Your profile is set to private, and the only person who can see it is your friends. So, the only person who can see it would have to be accepted as a FRIEND. It wasn't any major secret on how PDs get info on guys during their BIs.
Click to expand...
stp354 said:
Thats stupid. You made it out to be some sort of secret process.
Click to expand...

Yea no shit. Was it that hard to say? :rolleyes:


That said, I never accept friend requests from folks I dont know. I always ask a bunch of questions before I accept the friend request. I try to NOT accept requests from coworkers and if I do, I limit the content they can see unless they are my best best friend.
 
idk but maybe you can yabingooglehoo it, :explode: :explode:
 
The reality is we live in a plugged in, hooked up, camera watching world. From every corner traffic camera to every ATM camera. This is no different on the web. People are looking at your posted info every day.


This is not me being paranoid, it's just the reality of life. Many people enjoy posting pictures/events of their life on the web, but employers will gain that information if they want it, one way or another. 20 years ago employers depended on your references to form an opinion of your private life. Now that information is just a few mouse clicks away.


So as I have said before, be careful of what you put in cyberspace, it can come back to haunt you, as Fast LT1 found out the hard way(man that SUCKS! I hate to hear that).


Stay safe,


Chris
 
If you post a message on a friends "wall" instead of using the PM system, and your friends' profile is not as secure as yours, it WILL show up in a google search.


I have a feeling one of these "secret" tactics is to go through your friends list, which is still visible, and just friend request all or random people that are on your list, and see if someone approves you. Some people are dumb enough just to approve any friend request. Bam, they have access to at least part of your profile. They can see your status updates, wall posts, etc.
 
Facebook ain't working out so well for one Dallas PD princess.
 
I don't worry so much about what I post now that I am retired, but if I was still active LE, I would watch it like a hawk.


I still don't get too controversial or personal though.
 
I'm all for it. Everybody that I work with in my department, including my Sergeant and Chief, are my friends on facebook. If I don't want people to see it, I just don't post it. It's pretty simple.
 
Ben E. said:
I'm all for it. Everybody that I work with in my department, including my Sergeant and Chief, are my friends on facebook. If I don't want people to see it, I just don't post it. It's pretty simple.
Click to expand...

Pretty simple, eh? If you don't want it to be seen, don't let it be seen - and don't post it.
 
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