Facebook Passwords; The New Requirement Of Employers

By Ashutosh Kumar:

At the time of a job interview, if the interviewer asks for your Facebook username and password, don’t be surprised. By law, this is not illegal. Companies say that they want to know their prospective employee personally because they need to know who they are hiring.

A lot of cases come up every day where people do not want to give their personal information; as it is obviously like a demand for the keys to your house. But some of us who are much in need of the job have no choice, they have to give their account details.

I am talking about Justin Basset living in New York City; when he went for the interview, he was expecting for a usual question about the academics and experiences. After some general questions when he asked for his Facebook username and password he was shocked, why are they asking about his private information? How will it help him get this job? After thinking for a while he refused, saying that he didn’t want to work for a company which wishes to intrude upon his private space. But every jobseeker is not in the same situation to walk out on job offers.

As the social networking sites are growing every day, it is very easy for the managers of company to view the publically available information of applicant to know more about that person. Once that applicant is employed in that company they have to sign some agreement paper that they should not talk negatively about the company on the social networking sites. So the best option for the company is to take their Facebook and other online account details. But this is a clear case of encroachment  of the private space of a person’s life. What happened to the age old notion of keeping the private and professional spheres separate in one’s life. Intermixing of the two can produce disastrous results. What I do in the privacy of my bedroom is none of my employer’s concern. Period.

These types of details that they seek they can also get by sending friend requests on Facebook and I think no one has problem in adding their would-be senior or manager. So what is the need of the password? These things require a level of trust, people don’t even want to give their passwords to their friends, how can be they agree to give it to an unknown person?

So the decision is totally upon you and the job requirement. An employer should be judging you on who you are, not what Facebook shows you as.

Image courtesy: http://www.pcworld.com/article/252521/facebook_password_requests_from_employers_raise_ire_of_lawmakers.html