Comment by Sarah Shook on November 9, 2010 at 5:35pm

If you take away all of those things then what is there left to post about on Facebook? Most people, like myself, use Facebook for our friends and family, and other sites (Twitter, LinkedIn, etc) for professional purposes. The whole point of Facebook is to share yourself with your friends. My advice would be to make sure privacy settings are in place so that other than your immediate "friends", no one can see your profile or what you post. There's a difference to posting about yourself and taking it to an extreme.

The best rule of thumb to follow is "if you don't want it posted in the newspaper, then don't post it on Facebook".

Just my opinion. :)

Comment by J. Jeffrey Hallan on November 11, 2010 at 11:49am

Absolutely true - without those things, what's the point of Facebook OR Twitter? You could certainly post information outside the parameters of those guidelines, but your posts would be BORING, uninteresting and generally pointless, since, as Sarah says “The whole point of Facebook is to share yourself with your friends.” And, although Sarah's advice is good, it's been proven time and time again that the "security" functionality of Facebook is an illusion. In fact, the soundest advice given to users is that you should never post ANYTHING, regardless of privacy settings that you wouldn't want "posted in the newspaper". It logically follows, then, that being an active Facebook or Twitter poster is a high-risk activity for anyone using those services for their generally intended purpose. Those that ignore this fact regularly become the victims of their own ignorance. Just another way to “thin the herd” for a good Recruiter.

Comment by Donna Svei on November 11, 2010 at 12:42pm

Thank you Sarah and Jeffrey for your comments. I agree with your newspaper test. Never put anything in writing, anywhere, that you wouldn't want to see above the fold on the front page of the New York Times -- or that you wouldn't want your mom to see.

Also, kindly remember that the post is directed to job seekers. They can be "interesting" by posting information that recruiters want to know about them. Here are 12 ideas for starters: http://j.mp/aYOPhZ.

Best,

Donna

Comment by Boris Stefanovic on November 11, 2010 at 1:44pm

I agree with Sarah with one caveat: you cannot control your friends' privacy settings. If you make a comment about a photo (or appear in a photo) that is somehow compromising, you have to hope that the friend whose profile it's attached to has their privacy settings cranked up. And then you have to hope all their friends who might "share" that picture or "like" your comment are also secure. It's messy and risky even though your facebook is meant to be open to just personal friends.

Comment by Stephanie Bressan on November 11, 2010 at 10:47pm

Hmmm - is it just me or do we hire people based on not only their abilities, BUT also on who they are?? I don't care if everyone knows I am a Christian! If I was a member of Mensa, you can be sure I'd want people to know that too! I think the point of social media is to be genuine, then people can truly see who you are, what your values are and what type of person you are. Is it not better for an employer to know that upfront, instead of 3 months down the track and then having to recruit and train all over again? I think (the same as Sarah, Jeffrey and Boris), you need to be aware that what you post is there for everyone and and anyone to see and be aware that how you behave can be posted by others - so if you always behave in a way your Grandma would be proud of (or at least respect as who you are as an individual), then why can't we be authentic on social media?! IMHO!

Comment by Debbie Cantin on November 12, 2010 at 2:30pm

Hmm, I concur in part, people are hired based on their abilities; however, it is way too easy to form a bias from some information that was disclosed on social media sites. A rule of thumb is would you want your mother to see what you have posted?

Comment by Boris Stefanovic on November 12, 2010 at 3:34pm

The best way to avoid forming a bias is to avoid digging into candidate information on social media sites in the first place. Offhand I can't think of a legitimate line of inquiry that would be best addressed by such an action but I can imagine abuses of a social media data source costing people opportunities as a result of discrimination.

Although we have to recognize that it is happening and advise candidates accordingly (as per Donna's OP), I don't believe "digging up dirt" is an acceptable avenue for vetting applicants and, as a profession, we have an interest and an obligation in discouraging this practice.

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