The battle over SNS privacy for US employees and job applicants: an analysis of 2012–2013 state legislation

ABSTRACT

This study examines US legislation designed to prohibit employer access to employee and job applicant personal social networking sites (SNSs) between 2012 and 2013. It asks if the legislation addressed how employers could use SNSs in the hiring process by requesting SNS passwords, if there were consequences for violators, if employer retaliation was prohibited, if third-party access was allowed, if employee SNS monitoring was prohibited, if SNS friend requests by employers was allowed and if employer requested changes in privacy settings were prohibited. In addition, the study also examined the interest groups and political party-affiliated sponsors that were active in the creation of the legislation. The results discover important inconsistencies between the states’ legislation, which question the ability to protect worker and applicant online privacy. US policy recommendations and transnational implications follow.

KEYWORDS:

• Privacy rights
• Internet
• employment
• legislation
• surveillance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

David J. Park (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison) is an Associate Professor in the School of Communication and Journalism at Florida International University, USA. Author of Conglomerate Rock: The Music Industry's Quest to Divide Music and Conquer Wallets (Lexington Books), his research interests include media technologies, political economy, media and culture, environmental sustainability, consumerism and international communication. His scholarship appears in a variety of journals and book chapters, while he also serves on the editorial boards of various journals. [email: [email protected]].

Notes

1. Social networking websites consist of communities where individuals can interact with other users to share information and discuss interests (boyd & Ellison, 2007).