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House Kills Effort To Stop Workplace Requests For Facebook Passwords

Posted by timothy on from the password-so-strong-you-yourself-don't-know-it dept.

An anonymous reader writes "House Republicans today defeated an amendment introduced yesterday that would have banned employers demanding access to Facebook accounts. While the practice isn't widespread, it has caused a big brouhaha after reports surfaced that some organizations were requiring workers to hand over Facebook passwords as a condition of keeping their current job or getting hired for a new one."

1 of 275 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Was anyone suprised? by houstonbofh · · Score: 5, Informative

    But they can't. Seriously. It is illegal now. In Texas, it is a state jail crime. (I am sure in other states too, but I do not know all the laws.) The FaceBook TOS forbids sharing passwords, and using another password is "accessing a computer or system without the express permission of the owner" and put both the user and the employer in violation of the Texas hacking statute.

    Also, my FaceBook includes information that is protected under a few employment acts. It includes things like race, sexual preference, age, and religious affiliation. By asking, they are breaking employment law.