A recent article about FaceBook and MySpace discussed the new trend of employers reviewing these popular social networking sites for insights and information about job candidates. If you are a student or young professional with postings on these sites that may be..."less than flattering," than you may want to read the below article. KRW
Facebook and MySpace thwarting job opportunities
Abridged: MSNBC.com
NEW YORK, NY -- According to a March survey by Ponemon Institute, a privacy think tank, 35 percent of hiring managers use Google to do online background checks on job candidates, and 23 percent look people up on social networking sites. About one-third of those Web searches lead to rejections, according to the survey.
Social networking sites have gained popularity among hiring managers because of their convenience and a growing anxiety about hiring the right people, researchers say. Job candidates who maintain personal sites on Facebook or MySpace are learning - sometimes the hard way - that the image they present to their friends on the Internet may not be best suited for landing the position they're seeking. Big corporations long have retained professional investigators to check job applicants' academic degrees, criminal records and credit reports. But until now the cost has deterred the ability of smaller firms to do the same level of checking, said Sue Murphy, a director of National Human Resources Association. One problem is that there is little to prevent hiring managers from discriminating on the basis of personal information discovered through social Web sites.
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Kim R. Wells
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