A New Kind Of Background Check

According to a report in Forbes, the Federal Trade Commission recently decided to suspend an investigation of Social Intelligence Corporation. Social Intelligence offers a service to employers that checks social media sites for information on employees and job applicants. The FTC had some concerns about whether it complied with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, but it looks like those concerns have been addressed. This service offers a good opportunity to remind readers about the risks of checking social media sites as part of the employment process. In and of itself, it’s not a problem. But be consistent – if you only check women, or blacks or Muslims, that’s called discrimination. And while you are free to look at publicly available information, don’t violate privacy settings, and don’t get an employee with access to check for you. The information you find may not be worth the trouble you get into!