Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Travis: Facebook Stalkers.


In present day American society we have things that profile us. We have a drivers licenses, a social security number, bank accounts, credit cards, all these objects and more offer information about some of our most private affairs. We are typically private with this sort of sensitive information. We don't flaunt our credit cards numbers or social security numbers, unless your the life-lock guy. However, what sort of information do we flaunt? If you have a Facebook profile, chances are there is a large portion of yourself being “flaunted” to anyone and everyone on the internet, which can lead to detrimental consequences.

Take for example a story by the about a man by the name of Isaac Vicknair. Vicknair accumulated high amounts of debt through student loans via the government, and Vicknair was determined not to pay them. Vicknair tried to stay off the grid. He even quit jobs and relocated, all to avoid being tracked down by the debt collectors, which he did successfully for 10 years. This lead Vicknair to a job selling solar panels, where his boss advised that he set up a Facebook page to continue relationships with clients. After one day of having his personal and professional information on Facebook, the government debt collectors had tracked him down via his Facebook information, and began the process of forcing Vicknair to set up a payment plan, or garnish his wages. [1]

Another example comes from a recent poll of employers. Presently, 53% of employers research by seeking out a potential candidate's Facebook page, 2 in 5 employers saw something that dissuaded an employer from hiring said employee, and 28% of employers admitted to firing an employee due to content found on their Facebook page. [2]

As a young adult involved on Facebok, I am constantly being under pressure to keep my Facebook pages clear of any compromising photos or other materials because my Facebook life, is an extension of my real life. And with job recruiters, employers, and even police using facebook as a means of investigation, we all need to be mindful of our projected image online.

What do you think? Is it right for employers to look at our social networking sites to make hiring decisions? Is this an invasion of privacy? Or are we just filled with a false sens of privacy while were online?

10 comments:

  1. If you put it out there then I think it is okay for them to use it. Its probably something you lied about when you got hired anyway. If you want something to just be in your private life don't put it on facebook. If you just want your friends to know then send them a text message. When it comes to facebook its ultimately your decision jwhat you want to put out there. There isn't someone forcing you to talk about how trashed you were the previous weekend. When you click the post button you make it public information.

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  2. I admit I never thought I would say this here but...I agree with you wholeheartedly on this, jared.

    Also, you can make your account private.

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  3. Kacie, I knew you would come around.

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  4. Or if you are ashamed of your life on faceSchuch and you don't want certain people to see it then I think you should reevaluate your life choices.

    If you are ashamed of the things you do maybe don't do them? Then you won't have to worry about people digging up dirt.

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  5. If you are going to look at it from that aspect you are right Adam. Its not always the fact that people are ashamed of what they're doing though. In all honesty my personal life should matter to my employer. As long as I show up on time, do my job, and produce my personal life shouldn't matter. You don't pay me for my personal time. If you choose to post it there is not a person to blame but yourself.

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  6. That's true, Adam. Although, a lot of people aren't ashamed of the evidence but they know that prospective/current employers don't approve of it even though it's okay with them personally.

    Also, how badly did you want to call it faceSchuch? ;)

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  7. ...jared's latest post wasn't there a second ago. I promise I'm paying attention and not being intentionally redundant :D

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  8. I for one have chosen to keep my profile private even though, much like Adam suggested, the photos and conversations that I have on FaceSchuch are nothing that I am ashamed of. I didn't drink before I was 21, and there are minimum amounts of swearing on my walls and such.

    Even with all of that, I still struggle with choosing to "friend" my employers. When I was at Bethany, I even had to use my Facebook account to help recruitment and help my employer set up her Facebook. I didn't friend her until I left Bethany three years later. I just don't feel like mixing the personal with the business like that.

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  9. I have not been in any "compromising" situations that have required me to sensor photos of said events on facebook, but I need to watch things like the language I use, and the language of links that I post because I'm an employee of a church, and I am friends with other the other pastors on facebook, as well as people who attend the church. I don't have the luxery of a "private" facebook life.
    -travis

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  10. Travis, it's tough when you professional and personal life mesh together so much.

    I really have to abide by the rule "If I wouldn't say it in front of my grandmother, don't say it at all" because now she is on fb.

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