Data aggregators frequently make errors and information contained on the Internet could be either fabricated or entirely fictional. A photograph could be photoshopped or a statement taken out of context.
There are also significant ethical concerns with the use of the Internet to gather information about potential candidates. Zeidner (2007) points out that personal privacy rights may be violated if such searches are used without consent of both the candidates and the Internet service. Information that was intended to be private may be desired by the company, but the use of such information may constitute a violation of the candidate's rights. In addition, the right to privacy is considered to be sacrosanct by many Americans, so firms engaging in the practice of online screening of candidates may be avoided by top candidates on the basis of their desire to protect their privacy. Nord, McCubbins and Nord (2006) outlined some of the critical issues with respect to employee privacy including the limitations of existing legislation and the constraints...
Companies that cross the established legal lines on monitoring employee e-mail or worse employee off-hours activity risk not only facing suit but losing, costing the firm substantial amounts of money.
While there are distinct advantages to using the Internet to help vet candidates, the process is also very expensive. For that reason, it may be difficult to apply such searched across the entire body of candidates. This again opens the door for discrimination suits. In addition, it increases the costs associated with hiring, which may be more than the benefits accrued from the use of the searches. Employers must weight these benefits and drawbacks carefully before embarking on a program to vet employees using Internet searches.
Works Cited:
Zeidner, Rita. "How Deep Can you Probe?" HR Magazine, October 2007.
Nord, G., McCubbins, Tipton & Nord, Jeretta. "Privacy, Legislation and Surveillance Software." Communications of the ACM., 49,…
