By MANUEL VALDES and SHANNON MCFARLAND, AP
4 hours ago

Robert Collins of Baltimore poses for a photo Friday, March 16, 2012 at Cylb...

SEATTLE — When Justin Bassett interviewed for a new job, he expected the usual questions about experience and references. So he was astonished when the interviewer asked for something else: his Facebook username and password.

Bassett, a New York City statistician, had just finished answering a few character questions when the interviewer turned to her computer to search for his Facebook page. But she couldn't see his private profile. She turned back and asked him to hand over his login information.

Bassett refused and withdrew his application, saying he didn't want to work for a company that would seek such personal information. But as the job market steadily improves, other job candidates are confronting the same question from prospective employers, and some of them cannot afford to say no.

In their efforts to vet applicants, some companies and government agencies are going beyond merely glancing at a person's social networking profiles and instead asking to log in as the user to have a look around.

"It's akin to requiring someone's house keys," said Orin Kerr, a George Washington University law professor and former federal prosecutor who calls it "an egregious privacy violation."

Questions have been raised about the legality of the practice, which is also the focus of proposed legislation in Illinois and Maryland that would forbid public agencies from asking for access to social networks.

Since the rise of social networking, it has become common for managers to review publically available Facebook profiles, Twitter accounts and other sites to learn more about job candidates. But many users, especially on Facebook, have their profiles set to private, making them available only to selected people or certain networks.

Companies that don't ask for passwords have taken other steps — such as asking applicants to friend human resource managers or to log in to a company computer during an interview. Once employed, some workers have been required to sign non-disparagement agreements that ban them from talking negatively about an employer on social media.

Asking for a candidate's password is more prevalent among public agencies, especially those seeking to fill law enforcement positions such as police officers or 911 dispatchers.

Back in 2010, Robert Collins was returning to his job as a security guard at the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services after taking a leave following his mother's death. During a reinstatement interview, he was asked for his login and password, purportedly so the agency could check for any gang affiliations. He was stunned by the request but complied.

"I needed my job to feed my family. I had to," he recalled,

After the ACLU complained about the practice, the agency amended its policy, asking instead for job applicants to log in during interviews.

"To me, that's still invasive. I can appreciate the desire to learn more about the applicant, but it's still a violation of people's personal privacy," said Collins, whose case inspired Maryland's legislation.

Until last year, the city of Bozeman, Mont., had a long-standing policy of asking job applicants for passwords to their email addresses, social-networking websites and other online accounts.

And since 2006, the McLean County, Ill., sheriff's office has been one of several Illinois sheriff's departments that ask applicants to sign into social media sites to be screened.

Chief Deputy Rusty Thomas defended the practice, saying applicants have a right to refuse. But no one has ever done so. Thomas said that "speaks well of the people we have apply."

When asked what sort of material would jeopardize job prospects, Thomas said "it depends on the situation" but could include "inappropriate pictures or relationships with people who are underage, illegal behavior."

In Spotsylvania County, Va., the sheriff's department asks applicants to friend background investigators for jobs at the 911 dispatch center and for law enforcement positions.

"In the past, we've talked to friends and neighbors, but a lot of times we found that applicants interact more through social media sites than they do with real friends," said Capt. Mike Harvey.

"Their virtual friends will know more about them than a person living 30 yards away from them."

Harvey said investigators look for any "derogatory" behavior that could damage the agency's reputation.

E. Chandlee Bryan, a career coach and co-author of the book "The Twitter Job Search Guide," said job seekers should always be aware of what's on their social media sites and assume someone is going to look at it.

Bryan said she is troubled by companies asking for logins, but she feels it's not a violation if an employer asks to see a Facebook profile through a friend request. And she's not troubled by non-disparagement agreements.

"I think that when you work for a company, they are essentially supporting you in exchange for your work. I think if you're dissatisfied, you should go to them and not on a social media site," she said.

More companies are also using third-party applications to scour Facebook profiles, Bryan said. One app called BeKnown can sometimes access personal profiles, short of wall messages, if a job seeker allows it.

Sears is one of the companies using apps. An applicant has the option of logging into the Sears job site through Facebook by allowing a third-party application to draw information from the profile, such as friend lists.

Sears Holdings Inc. spokeswoman Kim Freely said using a Facebook profile to apply allows Sears to be updated on the applicant's work history.

The company assumes "that people keep their social profiles updated to the minute, which allows us to consider them for other jobs in the future or for ones that they may not realize are available currently," she said.

Giving out Facebook login information violates the social network's terms of service. But those terms have no real legal weight, and experts say the legality of asking for such information remains murky.

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.

But Lori Andrews, law professor at IITChicago-Kent College of Law specializing in Internet privacy, is concerned about the pressure placed on applicants, even if they voluntarily provide access to social sites.

"Volunteering is coercion if you need a job," Andrews said.

Neither Facebook nor Twitter responded to repeated requests for comment.

In New York, Bassett considered himself lucky that he was able to turn down the consulting gig at a lobbying firm.

"I think asking for account login credentials is regressive," he said. "If you need to put food on the table for your three kids, you can't afford to stand up for your belief."

___

McFarland reported from Springfield, Ill.

___

Manuel Valdes can be reached at https://twitter.com/ByManuelValdes.

Shannon McFarland can be reached at https://twitter.com/shanmcf.

[Edited 3/20/12 9:17am]

That is absurd.

I would either refuse or play dumb, claiming that I did not have a facebook page, whatever my profile pic claimed.

That's terrible.

At first, I thought this thread was going to be about some sort of scam.

Employers are really taking advantage of the depressed job market right now. Wages are being kept low due to the "financial crisis" even though many companies are turning a tidy profit.

Now they're overstepping their boundaries, and they damned well know that for every applicant that walks away, two will take his place in line.

Fury said:

That's why you have two profiles-- the freaky deeky one and the professional one!

Is that how it's done?

...time to revist my FB account...

The thing is...many people have information on their Facebook pages (age, marital status, etc) that it would be illegal for an employer to ask about in an interview. So how is it legal to request access to a Facebook page?

I think the part about making employees sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreements is perfectly fine, though. I signed one ages ago where I work.

Genesia said:

The thing is...many people have information on their Facebook pages (age, marital status, etc) that it would be illegal for an employer to ask about in an interview. So how is it legal to request access to a Facebook page?

I think the part about making employees sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreements is perfectly fine, though. I signed one ages ago where I work.

Agree it's perfectly fine to ask someone to sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement but I wouldn't work for someone who asked me to give over my user name or password.

I keep my info private for a reason. If I have the wherewithall to keep my business private you can rest assured I'd keep your business private as well.

CarrieMpls said:

Genesia said:

The thing is...many people have information on their Facebook pages (age, marital status, etc) that it would be illegal for an employer to ask about in an interview. So how is it legal to request access to a Facebook page?

I think the part about making employees sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreements is perfectly fine, though. I signed one ages ago where I work.

Agree it's perfectly fine to ask someone to sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement but I wouldn't work for someone who asked me to give over my user name or password.

I keep my info private for a reason. If I have the wherewithall to keep my business private you can rest assured I'd keep your business private as well.

Totally agree.

What the fucking hell is wrong with the world?

That's why my real name ain't on Facebook.

i didn't read the whole thing, i stopped at "asked him for his username and password"

THAT'S JUST CRAZY!!!

now,

i have warned my daughter, grand-daughter and niece (who all share the same age)

that it's very un-wise to act out on fb and these other sites because it will follow them

in their future endevors no matter whut they may be. AND even if they choose to stay

ignorant the rest of their lives, whut they say and do (online) can and will reflect baddly

on anyone in the family who may want to further themselves in a political arena. that

their actions will be looked upon as a reference of their character and the character of the

people they socialize with. IS IT RIGHT TO DO SO??? i cannot say my family is not

a sum of my character, or lack there of, so i cannot see the benifit of holdin others

responsible for other's bad acts.

in today's society though, one has to expect that whut they do, even in social media,

will carry into their private life which includes careers.

NOT MY RULE, BUT A RULE NONE THE LESS

Vendetta1 said:

That's why my real name ain't on Facebook.

Now Stymie will never get a job.

as long as the page is set to private

it seems one would just say "HACK IT

if it's that important, because that's the

only way someone can get to my stuff"

Timmy84 said:

CLICK

Dave1992 said:

What the fucking hell is wrong with the world?

America hands corporations way too much power.

Genesia said:

The thing is...many people have information on their Facebook pages (age, marital status, etc) that it would be illegal for an employer to ask about in an interview. So how is it legal to request access to a Facebook page?

I think the part about making employees sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreements is perfectly fine, though. I signed one ages ago where I work.

Yeah, I can't imagine this kind of thing is legal, either.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Dave1992 said:

What the fucking hell is wrong with the world?

America hands corporations way too much power.

And I see why, with the increasing competition and all that they have the power to choose and ask for ridiculous things from their employees. But this is just a fucking mess and takes it a couple of steps too far. I would question any person's understanding of moral values if they wanted me to hand over something this private.

I'm not even sure whether doing this would be allowed in many countries.

NDRU said:

Genesia said:

The thing is...many people have information on their Facebook pages (age, marital status, etc) that it would be illegal for an employer to ask about in an interview. So how is it legal to request access to a Facebook page?

I think the part about making employees sign non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreements is perfectly fine, though. I signed one ages ago where I work.

Yeah, I can't imagine this kind of thing is legal, either.

I bet it is.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

NDRU said:

Yeah, I can't imagine this kind of thing is legal, either.

I bet it is.

I doubt it. As Genesia said, employers can't even ask you what your age is.

You can ask to perform a background check or even credit report, but it's not like a facebook account is like a driver's license number. You don't have to admit to even having one.

But they can always not hire you!!

Dave1992 said:

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

America hands corporations way too much power.

And I see why, with the increasing competition and all that they have the power to choose and ask for ridiculous things from their employees. But this is just a fucking mess and takes it a couple of steps too far. I would question any person's understanding of moral values if they wanted me to hand over something this private.

I'm not even sure whether doing this would be allowed in many countries.

It won't. People are just bullies here... and I call for internet access to be absent from work. People wanna know too damn much.

Timmy84 said:

Dave1992 said:

And I see why, with the increasing competition and all that they have the power to choose and ask for ridiculous things from their employees. But this is just a fucking mess and takes it a couple of steps too far. I would question any person's understanding of moral values if they wanted me to hand over something this private.

I'm not even sure whether doing this would be allowed in many countries.

It won't. People are just bullies here... and I call for internet access to be absent from work. People wanna know too damn much.

That won't work, either. Companies (including the one I work for) are doing more and more cloud-based stuff - not to mention more and more internet marketing. I couldn't do my job if I lost my internet access.

Genesia said:

Timmy84 said:

It won't. People are just bullies here... and I call for internet access to be absent from work. People wanna know too damn much.

That won't work, either. Companies (including the one I work for) are doing more and more cloud-based stuff - not to mention more and more internet marketing. I couldn't do my job if I lost my internet access.

Dammit...lol

My boss told me last year that he'd visited my Facebook page via a mutual friend.

I'm glad he told me because if he hadn't my page would still be set to public.

Not that I do anything that i wouldn't want my work to find out about...If we socialised out of work I wouldn't see a problem.

NDRU said:

That is absurd.

I would either refuse or play dumb, claiming that I did not have a facebook page, whatever my profile pic claimed.

Exactly! The latter is the best approach. Now they could, if they had the resources and were really desperate to know, search FB for your pic or for your emergency contact or other variations of your name and you might still end up in hot water but by that time you will have gotten a couple paychecks out of them and some unemployment.

You wouldn't stick pictures and write personal things on the front of your house would you. I have a fictitious Facebook but it's mainly for Prince boots and the like. It's laughable went you see someone in the street and you know all about their lives via Facebook.

My neighbour posted her likes as jogging, clubbing, fine dining and more.... i know for a fact that her kids have been brought up on McDonald's and she sits in her conservatory supping wine on her laptop every night, probably bullshitting on Facebook.

[Edited 3/20/12 14:19pm]

Genesia said:

Vendetta1 said:

That's why my real name ain't on Facebook.

Now Stymie will never get a job.

Stymie has a job and she's sitting at her desk drinking Hurricanes right now.

Vendetta1 said:

Genesia said:

Now Stymie will never get a job.

Stymie has a job and she's sitting at her desk drinking Hurricanes right now.