I spoke at the Triangle Social Media Club, this week, and was asked for my thoughts on the City of Bozeman’s [now canceled] policy that required its employees to disclose social networking accounts, passwords, etc. I answered that question while thinking about Sharlyn’s Lauby’s piece in Mashable called 10 Must-Haves for Your Social Media Policy.
- Being a chump employer who doesn’t trust your employees? Not on the list.
If your employer asks for your usernames and passwords, you should say no. Then you should find a new job. Please remind your employer that disclosing your private information might violate the terms & conditions of most social networking sites (as eloquently articulated by the Triangle SMC attendees). Feel free to tell your employer to shove it, as well.
If you’re not violating the code of conduct in your employee handbook, you’re on the right side of this issue.
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Thanks for the mention Laurie. I totally agree that employers need to embrace social media and not look for ways to use it as an interrogation strategy.
Laurie, I really wish you would make your opinion about this a bit more clear.
Thanks
Yes, you’re being a bit too subtle.
If my employer demanded all my passwords, I’d change every single one to a variation of a phrase which cannot be printed in a safe-for-work publication. “No, I’m not cursing at you. That’s my LinkedIn password. My Twitter password? It’s the same, except the ‘YOU’ is in all-caps.”
Great post, Laurie! I totally agree – if an employer ever asked that of me I would say a big ol’ HAYYYYLLLL NO!
-Molly
It’s just a cover for a phishing scam. Seriously, at the Qualigence Recruitment Learning Conference during HR Tech week, the recruiting panel concurred that, while using social media to screen applicants is one thing, asking for account passwords is poor policy.
I feel the same way about this as I do about drugs: if it’s not happening at work and it’s not affecting the employee’s performance, then why is it an issue?
An employer can do a google search to see if Prospective Employee works as a stripper on the weekends. The Salvation Army or the Dept of Child Welfare might decide such a person wouldn’t fit into the organization, but otherwise, what people do on their own time is their own darn business.
If you do do something stupid like burn your sheriff boss in effigy, video it, and post the video to facebook, then the employer can take action because that person is obviously too stupid to be trusted in any capacity.
http://www.twincities.com/wisconsin/ci_13451855?nclick_check=1
It is a trust issue indeed. Why would anyone want to work for an employer who doesn’t trust them or have an employee they don’t trust? End the relationship ASAP.
My two cents on this: organizations & managers that ask for passwords & access are not only doing this as a control tactic; they are acting without integrity & honesty. Never share your passwords with anyone. Be safe & report those who ask for that information.
It’s complete bollocks for employers to demand passwords, or even to block access to Facebook, Twitter, et al. So then what? Your employees will access those sites with their iPhones and Crackberries. You lose, boss. Get with the 21st century and embrace the technologies.
I think some employers are getting increasingly ignorant in this horrible economy since they pretty much have a captive group of employees right now. Once this ship turns around, and we’re all back to figuring out how to recruit again, those companies are going to be FUBA on the recruiting front if they’re located in any kind of diverse job market where candidates have other opportunities.
It was a stupid story when it came out. It was a stupid idea when they announced it. It was even stupider when they retracted it, demonstrating the lack of intestinal fortitude of your average politician.
It’s just stupid. (But, if you log into personal accounts at work, your workplace IT may be obtaining your passwords anyway.)
@Sharlyn I think you wrote the definitive piece on this subject. Great job!
@Debbie BEING SUBTLE: I AM DOIN IT RONG.
@Perrik Hahahahaha. That would be awesome.
@Molly Maybe this is why we’re both self-employed right now?
@Kevin Good point re: phishing and poor policy. I wouldn’t even use social media to screen candidates, though. ERE had a great session on making sure social media tools are predictable, reliable, and valid in the hiring process. (Often they aren’t.)
@Class God I really hate stupid people.
@Bob Thanks!
@Erick You are so right about honesty & integrity. Report them ASAp using social media tools like Twitter.
@H.Aria I agree with you about ignorance. The balance of power will shift and employers will pay the price for their arrogance.
@Michael True dat re: your privacy. Use your employer’s network at your own risk, yo.
This subject just came up during a break in the action of a panel interview I was running for a client. One who worked for a quasi government company didn’t think it was wrong, while the attorney who worked for a big law firm said hell no.
It’s the stuff that people put out there without the password that’s fair game. Giving an employer your user name and password is like allowing them to drop by the house and look in your medicine cabinet whenever the hell they want.
Run far, far away from those that think this is okay.
Wait—employers can ask for your usernames and passwords to social networking sites? How? Why? What—is my boss going to log in to my Facebook and find out what bar me and my friends are going to Friday night? Is that going to show up on my next performance review? What the hell…
Psycho girlfriends and boyfriends ask for your username and password—are our employers our new psycho significant others?
I’m still amazed that this happened. When I first saw it on Twitter I thought it was a joke or link to fake news al a The Onion.
I agree with Laurie’s point during the SMC Triangle meeting that a company that wants to set a policy like this is not one you want to work for. I can’t emphasize that point more. I took several jobs with companies that had I done more research I would have discovered they were not what they said they were. Of course this was before social networks but nonetheless when you take a job it’s a committment.
I live and work in Billings, about 2 hours down the road from Bozeman – and we all had a good laugh that the City of Bozeman, for even 1 second, thought this was a good idea. “Oh, after national publicity, we’ve decided to end this practice!” Doh!
So as always, the debate here seems on point to me – no contest on this one. The internal debate I’m starting to have, though, is whether or not employers should be restricting access to social media sites at all. I understand the business case – it certainly can interfere (and I myself can be a big offender). However, isn’t it becoming a fabric to our environment that’s almost too hard to avoid? How is access to Twitter really any different from access to Email…especially when it involves the exchange of business relevant information and knowledge sharing? I hear lots of rumblings from our people re: “freedom.” I know all bets are off when on company time, but the reality is that the younger generations view social media as an entitlement…no, as a lifeblood. So no way should employers ask for passwords…I questions whether they should restrict access at all. As H Aria suggests, they’re going to find a way to get there anyway. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.