Employers Crossing the Line on Facebook

Social networking is a part of everyday life. It’s a way for people to catch up with friends and family online by posting photos and life updates. Although this information is posted on the internet, each user has control of privacy settings allowing visibility to specific people. This privacy control is being threatened by new policies used by some employers. Some companies are asking new and current employees to provide them with their social network login information. This would provide employers with access to photos, posts, and more information than some of the individual’s friends.

Requesting to access personal information is a blatant invasion of privacy. Gone are the days of posting vacation photos or a night out on the town. Don’t even think about posting your political or religious points of view. The private inbox e-mailing isn’t a safe bet anymore if your employer has access to your account they could use this information to terminate your employment.

Violation of privacy is bringing new lawsuits by individuals as well as the social networking giant Facebook. Asking for someone else’s password violates Facebook’s user agreements. Facebook’s chief privacy officer released the following statement, “We’ll take action to protect the privacy and security of our users, whether by engaging policymakers or, where appropriate by initiating legal action.”

Some states are taking action by developing new legislation. A new Bill in Maryland will stop employers from asking potential and current workers to provide them with access to their social media accounts. It also prohibits employers from taking disciplinary action or not hiring potential employees based on refusal to give access to social media accounts.

The two senators responsible for this legislation, Senators Richard Blumenthal and Charles Schumer have questioned whether this violates the Stored Communications Act. The Stored Communications Act is the federal statute that protects the privacy of stored Internet communications as part of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. The SCA states it is an offense for an individual or entity to intentionally access electronic communications services. Accessing these sites is grounds for jail time or fines, and the person whose information has been violated can seek a civil suit.

In light of the potential violations of privacy and threats of lawsuits, employers should think twice before requesting access to individual social networking accounts. Is it worth the risk to ask for this private information? An employer would not ask to read an individual’s postal mail and they should not request access to their electronic mail.