A few days ago on this blog, I discussed about the recent news that some employers have been asking their potential employees for their Facebook log in credentials. The article about the subject noted how this was an invasion of privacy and how employers were taking things a step too far in their quest to micro manage every aspect of their employee's personal and professional life.
As it turns out, Facebook is not too happy about this development. And why should they be? This is a legal liability waiting to happen for both Facebook and the employers in question. Employers are harshly warned about not asking people for passwords. Anyone who is willing to give out passwords so freely should be considered a potential security risk to begin with.
Phishing, Fraud, and Invasion of Privacy
Millions of dollars are stolen each year through identity theft, with fraud being enacted through phishing scams. For those who are unaware, phishing is the art of using what appears to be an official e-mail but really is a front to commit fraud. Yahoo, Microsoft, Google, Amazon.com, banks, credit card companies, and even the Internal Revenue Service have been among the many companies that have been utilized in an attempt to phish for details.
Phishing is not mutually exclusive to e-mail in this day and age. People have gotten on the phone, posing as someone who they are not. It is hard to say who you can trust and who you cannot trust. Therefore the default answer would be never to give your personal information out to anyone ever, for any reason whatsoever. Period. Many companies state this plainly in their terms of use and privacy policy, but it go to reason that many individuals do not read the terms of use and the privacy policy.
Facebook has issued a stern warning to employers who wish to ask for passwords and also reminded their base of users of the dangers of giving out personal information. The fact does remain that having a database of personal information is a ticking time bomb waiting to go off. The wrong person who has access to the information gets annoyed with the company and they can use the personal information to cause a lot of chaos.
For those who must have a Facebook account, be mindful of what you post and if anyone asks for your personal information, it is not a wise idea to share that information for any reason. No one has any reason to ask you for it.
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