Which companies asking for facebook password

Finally, you land a killer opportunity, pass the phone screen and show up to an interview with a hiring manager. This is common enough that it now has a name: Shoulder Surfing. The ruling, made by the FTC in May, , was that companies can use social media information as part of a background check, but this information must be available from public databases. In other words, strictly speaking, it could be illegal for companies to use private social media information against you without your consent.

I say could be because I am not a lawyer, I just pay attention. However, there are some cases wherein this type of deep probing could be deemed appropriate; for example law enforcement or defense.

But when Justin Bassett, a statistician based in New York, was asked for his Facebook password he refused. Geller added that this part of the background check is optional although nobody has ever refused , and denying access is "not an automatic disqualifier.

When it comes to colleges and universities, ACLU advocacy and policy strategist Allie Bohm says schools most often monitor the social media accounts of student-athletes. Some schools require student-athletes to Facebook friend a coach, while others make them install software like UDiligence. Another company, Varsity Monitor , keeps tabs on student-athletes, but doesn't require any installation of software and does not monitor any non-public information.

Bohm admits that laws protecting social media accounts need to avoid blocking employers and schools from carrying out some necessary oversights. Bohm says laws need to allow self-regulating companies to fulfill their legal obligations — such as a financial institution monitoring insider trading, for example, as well as some legitimate cases of bullying that schools must investigate.

Social media monitoring is more widespread than people understand, Shear says. Facebook has spoken out against businesses that demand Facebook usernames and passwords from their employees and prospective hires. It also potentially exposes the employer who seeks this access to unanticipated legal liability," Facebook chief privacy officer Erin Egan writes in a Friday blog post. Reports of such practices are widespread. In June , the city of Bozeman, Montana made headlines when it was revealed that its job applications forms asked for usernames and passwords for the job seekers accounts on "social networking," including everything from Facebook and Twitter to YouTube and Google.

Earlier this year, the American Civil Liberties Union took aim at the Maryland Department of Corrections after it asked a Maryland man for his Facebook credentials during a recertification interview.