charlene cain on background screening of job seekers

WHAT’S YOUR ONLINE

PROFILE?And what does it mean

for your job search?

Charlene CainJuly 23, 2011

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Prosecutors Look to Social Media for Selecting Casey Anthony JurorsPosted May 16, 2011 10:54 AM CDTBy Stephanie Francis Ward

Prosecutors trying Casey Anthony, a 25-year-old Florida woman charged with murdering her young daughter, were armed with Internet information during a special Saturday jury selection, checking out panel members’ social media profiles during voir dire.

According to the Associated Press, prosecutors in the high-profile case used a preemptory challenge to dismiss an individual who allegedly posted the jury instructions on his Facebook page. He also joked about writing a book, the AP reports.

Another juror, who Tweeted about a fender bender, was also excused. “Cops in Florida are idiots and completely useless,” was most likely the tweet that caught the government’s attention.

The case now has 12 jurors selected. Judge Belvin Perry Jr. said that once 15 potential jurors were chosen, he would like to start swearing them in.

HOW UBIQUITOUS IS SOCIAL MEDIA IMPACT?

http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/prosecutors_look_to_social_media_for_selecting_casey_anthony_jurors/





A HIRING MANAGER: WHY I WON’T HIRE YOU

“AND SPEAKING OF GOOGLE … I googled you and found that:a) You are weird, frankly, orb) You whine a lot on listservs with searchable archives orc) Whatever.

After all, you googled the library you are interviewing at and likely googled members of the search committee, didn’t you?”

HOW DO EMPLOYERS DO BACKGROUND SCREENING? Consumer Reporting Agencies Criminal background checks Immigration status Behavior on social networking

sites

WHAT ARE THEY TRYING TO FIND? Illegal immigrants Patterns of indiscretion Evidence

discriminatory attitudespoor skills related to employmentacademic fraudcriminal or inappropriate behavior

WHY DO THEY DO IT? DUE DILIGENCE

U.S. Department of Commerce: 30% of business failures directly

attributable to poorly-executed hiring procedures5% of employees later found to have

criminal records10% of applicants who sign

background check waivers have criminal records

40% of applicants have fraudulent resumes

2009 CAREERBUILDER.COM SURVEY 2,600 hiring managers surveyed45% use social networking sites to research candidates

http://www.careerbuilder.com/Article/CB-1337-Interview-Tips-More-Employers-Screening-Candidates-via-Social-Networking-Sites/



CAREERBUILDER.COM SURVEY

What do employers use? 29% use Facebook 26% use LinkedIn 21% use MySpace 11% search blogs 7% follow applicants on Twitter

CAREERBUILDER.COM SURVEY

35% of employers rejected job applicants based upon information on social networking sites

REASONS CITED FOR APPLICANT REJECTION

Content on social networking sites53%: Inappropriate photographs or

information44%: Content about drinking or using

drugs35%: Negative comments re: employers,

colleagues or clients29%: Poor communication skills26%: Discriminatory comments24%: Misrepresentation of qualifications20%: Sharing previous employer’s

confidential information

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES & EMPLOYERS (NACE) SURVEY OF COLLEGE STUDENTS

70% of Class of 2011 seniors said they expect employers to view candidates’ social networking profiles

http://www.naceweb.org/s06082011/social_media_job_search/

TWEETING Tweeting has the weight of trust Users willing to share intimate

details Downside:

Fodder for opposing campaigns to use against politicians

When Tweets go viral they can be used against incumbents

TWEETING, CONT’D Tweeting has tremendous potential liability

Tweets are subject to electronic discovery/subpoena

Heavily-regulated companies required to preserve and maintain electronic records, including tweets

TWEETING, CONT’D Tweets can go viral and be publicized

Tweets cannot really be deleted

So…What if a trade secret is Tweeted?

What if an employee sends a personal Tweet via a corporate account? Case in point: #gettngslizzerd

EMPLOYER RISKS It is not illegal to search online profiles during the employment process, but doing so can lead to:Accusations/reality of discrimination

Questions regarding credibility and accuracy of information found

Questions regarding how much of the information found is “fair game”

POTENTIAL LEGAL RISKS FOR EMPLOYERS Does looking at online profiles spark an

action in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act Americans with Disabilities Act

of 1990 Age Discrimination in

Employment Act of 1967 Executive Order 11246

HOW EMPLOYERS PROTECT THEMSELVES Obtain consent first Have a clear internal policy and

documented training Have objective & documented methods

and metrics Screen the same sites for all candidates Have an in-house person not connected

to any hiring process do the screening Pre-define the types of information

screening for and the criteria used Employers should never friend an

applicant

HOW CAN YOU PROTECT YOURSELF?

1. Keep your networking professional, even if your settings are completely private


2. Keep your profiles as private as possible

Facebook: Only let your friends view your information

Twitter: Make sure you check your followers list regularly

Realize that if another user tags you in a photo or

video or at a place, you can remove the tag or limit who can see that tag

some content you share will show up on your friends’ pages and other pages they visit

even if you remove information from your profile or delete your account, that information may remain viewable elsewhere if it has been shared with others, or it was copied or stored by other users

Facebook privacy settings



Realize thatmessages you send to others cannot

be removedwhen you post on another user’s

profile or comment on another user’s post, that post will be subject to the other user’s privacy settings

if you use an external source to post to Facebook, such as a mobile application, the privacy setting for that post will be set by that external source

Facebook privacy settings


3. Don’t accept friend requests from people you don’t know personally

http://www.facebook.com/policy.php

http://www.facebook.com/policy.php