2-3 Facebook and Work

Pre-reading

• Can you think of possible dangers to using Facebook?
• Do you believe a person’s personal life should matter at their job?
• What is the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)? Go to their website and find out what they do and why.
• What are these rights? Are they important in your life?

Article

• insist
• entitled
• reinstated
• come to light
• credentials
• overwhelmingly
• none of (someone’s) business
• implied
• affiliation
• appalled
• recertification
• jeopardize
• correctional officer

ACLU: Facebook password isn't your boss' business

(CNN) -- Your Facebook password is none of your new boss' business.

That's what the American Civil Liberties Union is saying after reports that employers are increasingly asking for access to job applicants' social-media accounts.

"It's an invasion of privacy for private employers to insist on looking at people's private Facebook pages as a condition of employment or consideration in an application process," attorney Catherine Crump said in a statement from the ACLU. "People are entitled to their private lives."

Recently, multiple cases have come to light in which companies have either asked for passwords to Facebook or required that applicants "friend" people at those companies.

Robert Collins of the Baltimore area has said that he was looking to be reinstated to his job as a correctional officer in 2010 when he was asked for his Facebook password.

"I did not want to do it, but because I really needed my job and he implied that this was a condition of recertification, I reluctantly gave him the password," Collins said in February in testimony before the Maryland House of Representatives, which is considering ACLU-backed legislation to block such practices.

"He then proceeded to log in to my account using my private credentials. I asked him, 'Why are you logging on?' He said, 'I am looking through your messages, on your wall and in your photos to make sure you are not a gang member or have any gang affiliation.'"

An Associated Press report this week highlighted Justin Bassett, a New York statistician who said that, during a job interview, the interviewer pulled up his Facebook page and asked for his password. He said he refused.

The ACLU said it's found an increasing number of companies with such policies on Facebook. They say it's more common with public agencies, such as law enforcement. "You'd be appalled if your employer insisted on opening up your postal mail to see if there was anything of interest inside," Crump said. "It's equally out of bounds for an employer to go on a fishing expedition through a person's private social media account."

On an ACLU Facebook page Thursday, followers were, not surprisingly, overwhelmingly against the concept.

"I consider it a violation of personal privacy," one user wrote. "Will the next step be to request a key to my house?"

It is technically against Facebook's Terms of Service to share a password. "You will not share your password, (or in the case of developers, your secret key), let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account," the agreement reads.

Questions

1. What happened to Robert Collins and Justin Bassett? What are the main differences between their two cases?
2. Would you let a potential employer look at your Facebook page? Why or why not?
3. How did Facebook react to these stories? Read this statement to see their reaction. Do you think it is strong enough?

Protecting Your Passwords and Your Privacy March 23, 2012 at 5:32 AM In recent months, we’ve seen a distressing increase in reports of employers or others seeking to gain inappropriate access to people’s Facebook profiles or private information. This practice undermines the privacy expectations and the security of both the user and the user’s friends. It also potentially exposes the employer who seeks this access to unanticipated legal liability. The most alarming of these practices is the reported incidents of employers asking prospective or actual employees to reveal their passwords. If you are a Facebook user, you should never have to share your password, let anyone access your account, or do anything that might jeopardize the security of your account or violate the privacy of your friends. We have worked really hard at Facebook to give you the tools to control who sees your information. As a user, you shouldn’t be forced to share your private information and communications just to get a job. And as the friend of a user, you shouldn’t have to worry that your private information or communications will be revealed to someone you don’t know and didn’t intend to share with just because that user is looking for a job. That’s why we’ve made it a violation of Facebook’s Statement of Rights and Responsibilities to share or solicit a Facebook password. We don’t think employers should be asking prospective employees to provide their passwords because we don’t think it’s the right thing to do. But it also may cause problems for the employers that they are not anticipating. For example, if an employer sees on Facebook that someone is a member of a protected group (e.g. over a certain age, etc.) that employer may open themselves up to claims of discrimination if they don’t hire that person. Employers also may not have the proper policies and training for reviewers to handle private information. If they don’t—and actually, even if they do—the employer may assume liability for the protection of the information they have seen or for knowing what responsibilities may arise based on different types of information (e.g. if the information suggests the commission of a crime). Facebook takes your privacy seriously. We’ll take action to protect the privacy and security of our users, whether by engaging policymakers or, where appropriate, by initiating legal action, including by shutting down applications that abuse their privileges. While we will continue to do our part, it is important that everyone on Facebook understands they have a right to keep their password to themselves, and we will do our best to protect that right. -- Erin Egan, Chief Privacy Officer, Policy

Further Discussion

• What do you think about privacy in general? Do you think your personal information is safe online or off?
• What do you think will happen in the future with privacy? Will our entire lives be open to the world?

Additional Resources

• Article - The Guardian