Facebook Password Is Fair Game Summary

Why Asking for a Job Applicant’s Facebook Password Is Fair Game” by Alfred Edmond Jr. discusses the ethical and social issues that arise if an employer asks a potential employee for their Facebook password and in what cases this is appropriate. From the beginning of the essay, Edmond takes a stance, saying, “Many people who watched me on mSNBC’s Your Business on Sunday were surprised to hear that my answer is Yes” (132). Edmond then talks about the two circumstances in which this question can be asked. The first of these circumstances is as an employee or someone looking to be hired. He states, “For me to consider it, I would have to want the job pretty badly, with the amount and type of compensation (including benefits, perks, and even an equity stake in the company) …show more content…
Edmond says that, “If I’m the owner of certain types of businesses or trying to fill certain positions, I believe I should be able to ask job applicants for access to their Facebook accounts” (133). Edmond then gives an example of a particular job in which this makes sense; the child care industry. The reasoning behind this is that, “If I am running a school or a daycare center, the time to find out that a teacher or other worker has a record of inappropriate social media communication with minors, or worse, a history of or predilection for sexual relationships with students is during the hiring process…” (133). Other than that, it is worth noting for Edmond, that regardless of being asked this question, social media is not the most private of places. In fact, he suggests that it is “Better to think of social media as the ultimate ‘Front Street’” (134). All in all, social media is a great tool that can be used by employers in the hiring process, so future employees should be careful on what they say on social media and keep their most private things off of the internet, not on their “private” Facebook