Would you give your employer your facebook password if asked?

[warpus]

If your FB account is private though, and an interview wanted to see it to make sure there wasn't any objectionable content, or to make sure you knew how to use FB, they could ask you to log in in front of them and review the content (which is what I imagine the person in the OP's scenario wanted to do), without violating FB's terms.

If the job would involve you using your personal facebook account, and that ends up being tied to the company on a day to day basis, then I see that as the only legitimate reason for somebody asking you to log into your facebook account and show that the content is not objectionable in some way.

But how many jobs like that exist? Your initial OP seems to ask the question in a much much broader context.

 

[Loppan Torkel]

I'd tell her I don't have any tit shots on facebook.

 

[AlpsStranger]

Privacy uber alles! (that works, yeah??)

Sadly, I think we're slowly losing this battle. My younger relatives don't really even understand the word privacy the same way I do.

Their kids will probably go full orgy-porgy and have no idea what privacy was ever used for.

 

[ace99]

I'd tell her I don't have any tit shots on facebook.

Then gtfo.

She ended up getting the job for anyone who cares. So worth it, apparently.

 

[Mise]

Yeah, I'd have to open up my pw database on my phone and have them type in a 32 character string. Then I'd have to open facebook's OTP generator app and type that in too.

Showing them on my phone is the easiest way.

 

[Smellincoffee]

What if the job description includes managing a facebook account?

If your job description involves managing a firm's facebook account, or their social networking accounts in general, why would that make their asking for your account information legitimate? It's rather like asking for the key to someone's personal post office box because their job is to check the firm's own post box -- or am I not understanding your meaning?

 

[Commodore]

Sadly, I think we're slowly losing this battle. My younger relatives don't really even understand the word privacy the same way I do.

Their kids will probably go full orgy-porgy and have no idea what privacy was ever used for.

Agreed. Even my wife who is about 5 years younger than me doesn't seem to fully grasp why privacy is an important part of our civil liberites.

By the way, that was a solid Brave New World reference.

 

[Cheezy the Wiz]

Sadly, I think we're slowly losing this battle. My younger relatives don't really even understand the word privacy the same way I do.

Their kids will probably go full orgy-porgy and have no idea what privacy was ever used for.

How do you understand it?

How do they understand it?

 

[AlpsStranger]

I think I just consider far, far more things private than they do.

I also don't feel a particularly strong need to 'reconnect.' Dead friendships died for a reason. That's not directly related to privacy, but it's also an aspect of social networking I don't like.

 

[TheLastOne36]

The only three jobs where I think this would be defensible would be things that require a particular security clearance, political organizing (where, like it or not, operative facebook profiles can become campaign issues), and a job where social media was part of the job description. I can see why a law firm would ask, but I wouldn't give them the info)

Pretty much this. I'd give it if it was under an understandable circumstance relating to the job. Otherwise no.

I have two facebooks anyway, a private one and a public professional one.

 

[AlpsStranger]

Doesn't that technically violate the Facebook ToS?

EDIT: Don't take that as a threat or anything. I certainly wouldn't rat you out You can wipe yourself with their ToS for all I care.

 

[schlaufuchs]

If the job required experience with Twitter or Facebook I would show them but not give them the password. I really don't have much to hide. Just a bunch of (for other people) tedious couply pictures from Europe, a lot of complaining about 49ers and Giants and some mildly interesting history anecdotes.

 

[Goodfella]

Doesn't that technically violate the Facebook ToS?

EDIT: Don't take that as a threat or anything. I certainly wouldn't rat you out You can wipe yourself with their ToS for all I care.

FB has like 800 million users so I wonder if that's enforced at all. Do you know?

 

[capslock]

I did it once before, when working for a govt agency that required a low level security clearance, and under very specific circumstances, I would do it again (and by do it, I mean show the account, not give the password, something I'd never ever ever do).

Digital and social media marketing is a major part of my job now. It isn't super uncommon for folks to ask to see various social media accounts, like FB and Twitter...not so much to see what they posted, but if they wrote regularly and had large personal networks. I imagine a social media marketer who doesn't really use social media might be a negative attribute.

I don't really like doing it though, and I don't think I'd ever go through with it again if the job description didn't explicitly call for facebook experience.

The only three jobs where I think this would be defensible would be things that require a particular security clearance, political organizing (where, like it or not, operative facebook profiles can become campaign issues), and a job where social media was part of the job description. I can see why a law firm would ask, but I wouldn't give them the info)

What level clearence? I've never heard of that before.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I think you're forgetting that somebody asking you to provide them with your login and password to any site as a part of a hiring process is usually unethical already.

Usually? Try ALWAYS.

If your FB account is private though, and an interview wanted to see it to make sure there wasn't any objectionable content, or to make sure you knew how to use FB, they could ask you to log in in front of them and review the content (which is what I imagine the person in the OP's scenario wanted to do), without violating FB's terms.

If they want to make sure you know how to use FB, just go there and make a "test" account that will be deleted immediately after you prove you know how to do it. That way there's no privacy to invade, since the account would exist for only a few minutes. And even then, don't give them the damn password you use.

This. I have no wish to give any company the benefit of my services who dragoons its employees into divulging access to such personal information. Would they also ask for the front door key to my house?

Excellent question. Downtown, if I were considering hiring you, would you give me the keys to your house/apartment? Just so I could inspect the contents, make sure you know how to use everything and that you have nothing objectionable... And I TOTALLY promise not to do anything mean with the information I learn about you, your family, your friends, and your acquaintances!

No?

Then why the hell would you give up your Facebook password?

I guess we could pull out our phones and show them on there...

That wouldn't help me. Mind you, I'd love to see the expression on any employer's face if he/she asks to see my phone and I pull my clunky landline out. The most advanced feature that has is "redial."

If the job would involve you using your personal facebook account, and that ends up being tied to the company on a day to day basis, then I see that as the only legitimate reason for somebody asking you to log into your facebook account and show that the content is not objectionable in some way.

But how many jobs like that exist? Your initial OP seems to ask the question in a much much broader context.

Even that is unacceptable. Why would an employee's personal account be tied to the company? Presumably, if the employee's duties included using Facebook, he/she would be using a company account.


Some people here are frighteningly naive about other peoples' "good intentions" and sense of ethics... For this reason, the only way I'd log into any of my online accounts in front of a prospective employer is if I could use MY OWN COMPUTER, and I could shield the password from prying security cameras (as stores recommend when using a debit machine).

 

[AlpsStranger]

What I can't understand is why you'd put up with some of this digital crap when you wouldn't put up with your boss rummaging through your trash or indexing the contents of your refrigerator or family picture albums. It's not different, no matter how hard the data miners work to convince you otherwise.

Ad targeting is hardly such a high and noble cause that it justifies all that is done to facilitate it.

 

[ace99]

You're so strange, are you saying you wouldn't accept an proctology exam from your boss?

 

[NickyJ]

Yeah, I'd give him my Facebook account. I don't have one, but before I'd join a company, I'd make one. If my employer demanded to see it, I'd give him the password (Screwyou,[insert employer's name here]), and let him see all my messages detailing how every day when I get home from work, I feel so frustrated because the boss is a jerk, and that I get my sticks and go out to the shed and pound on that drum like it was the boss's head.

 

[warpus]

If the job required experience with Twitter or Facebook I would show them but not give them the password. I really don't have much to hide. Just a bunch of (for other people) tedious couply pictures from Europe, a lot of complaining about 49ers and Giants and some mildly interesting history anecdotes.

Yeah, I don't really get what they'd check, if you're there at the interview and they ask you to take a look. Are they going to check your friends list to see if the unabomber is not on there? Check your newsfeed to make sure that you haven't posted any racist jokes lately?

It just seems like it'd be so incredibly awkward with you there.. And if you're not there, they really have no business going through your account.

I suppose the job market in some places is so bad that people will do anything to get a job, but this sort of stuff should really be illegal. Workers rights and all that..

Usually? Try ALWAYS.

I left room for the situation where you want to be a PR representative of a firm and your personal life matters... or some sort of an extreme situation like that. I can't really think of a good example, but something similar to that. Maybe you're applying for a job where your life would be on display somehow and your personal life gets tied to the company's image? Something like that. *shrug*

 

[duckstab]

The other point that bears emphasizing is that this practice effectively allows prospective employers to do an end-run around laws that prevent them from asking certain questions about you directly in an interview. For example: your family status, religious beliefs, politics, medical history, or sexual orientation. Much of this information is likely to be available to our friends on social networks, but typically not something they can ethically or legally consider in determining whether or not to hire you.