Should Social Media Profiles Be Used For Background Checks?

775 Words4 Pages

Think back to the not-so-long-ago past where getting into college and getting a job was much more personal. One would write all their personal information down and turn it into a person, face to face. Nowadays getting a job and getting into college are losing that one on one feeling. Instead, they decide to go about figuring someone out by looking through one’s social media profiles. Although social media is public, it should not be used for background checks because people change, fake profiles can be made, and it is an invasion of privacy. The majority of people mature from when they first started using social media. But it is known that some people do not change. To begin with, “more often than not, that context has nothing to do with employment” …show more content…

Even though it can be tricky to figure the fakes from the reals. To say simply, “these sites are not necessarily valid nor is there any way to ascertain the true identity of the person responsible for the information found” (Kelly Watson et al). There is no way to be completely sure whether a profile is fake or real. Furthermore, as soon as employers or colleges find these profiles they completely write off this person as an applicant. Imagine, working so hard for a job position or getting into college and one bad profile created by a stranger completely destroys all chances a student may have had. They might have not even had a clue about this profile, but just like that; one would be utterly ignored and dismissed for any opportunities. All in all, fake profiles are made every day. Technology is something the majority of people use every day; with this easy access to the internet, it is not difficult to make up these fake profiles. People are "catfishing" others, which is becoming way too common and it is slowly but surely destroying lives. Keep in mind, profiles may be easy to find, but that certainly does not mean they are …show more content…

Although, everyone knows that everything online is public. Knowing the power of social media, “It could be used to manipulate voters, track activists, profile job applicants or even reveal a user’s physical movements” (Andre Oboler). So, using social media to check a person’s background for anything, can always go too far. Usually, employers tend to do more research than necessary when looking at profiles. For instance, there should be a certain point where the line should be drawn for employers or colleges when looking into one’s backgrounds. Taking things into one’s own hands by searching someone online is going beyond boundaries. An application has certain questions that are required to be answered, snooping around in someone’s social life is taking it a step too far. To say the least, we need to be able to limit the usage of accessing social media profiles, so the power is not abused. Social media is a great thing that brings people together on common interests, but that is all it is; social media. Overall, none of that information should be used in a professional manner. It is important to value other’s