Social Networking Sites Getting Risky For Recruiting

onehitwonder writes "While many recruiters and HR managers are taking advantage of the Web and online social networks to screen candidates for positions inside their organizations, a bank in Texas has decided that using social networking websites in its recruiting process is too risky legally. Amegy Bank of Texas now prohibits internal HR staff and external recruiters from using social networking sites in its hiring process. Amegy's decision to ban the use of social networking sites in its hiring process demonstrates its respect for prospective employees' privacy. It also sends a message to the employers and recruiters using social networks to snoop into job seekers' personal lives that their actions border on discrimination and could get them in a lot of legal trouble."

Comments

Re:Just because they say they don't

[lena_10326]

It all comes down to what has been said before, if you don't want the world to know, don't put it on the internet.

A naive way of thinking. Gary goes to a gay pride event. He's gay, but closeted and living in hisksville, usa. He's got interviews coming up but he knows he has no online presence so things should be fine. Lisa, ever the shutterbug, is also at the event and takes photos of the day and puts them on her blog. She writes about she made a new friend Gary. A few weeks later, Gary interviews at Acme, Inc. The interviewer scans the web and finds Lisa's blog about Gary. Subsequently, Gary doesn't get the job despite having perfect qualifications. Apparently the interviewer is a mormon with an ax to grind.

Moral of the story: you have no control what people post about you on the web.

Re:As a hiring manager, I really hate HR!

[YesDinosaursDidExist]

I second that.