Facebook Passwords Lead To Growing Debate

Both local and national lawmakers are jumping into the debate over whether employers asking for applicants’ Facebook passwords during job interviews are violating federal law.

On Monday, Democratic Senators Charles Schumer of New York and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut called on the Department of Justice and U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate recent reports that some companies are asking job seekers for their social media passwords during the interview process.

Last week, the social media giant asked employers not to ask job applicants for their passwords, threatening legal action that it would be a violation of the company’s long-standing policy against sharing that information.

Here in California, state Senator Leland Yee has introduced a bill that would prohibit employers from asking current employees or job applicants for their social media user names or passwords. It would also bar employers from requiring access to employees’ and applicants’ social media content. Maryland and Illinois are also looking into similar legislation.

It's simple. Keith Mizuguchi loves to write and write and write some more. After taking a hiatus from the journalism business, he has rekindled his passion for writing over the last two years, holding a job as both a web and on-air writer for San Francisco news radio station KCBS. While he enjoys the news business, his true passions are twofold: sports and food. Bay Area born and raised, he lives in San Jose, commutes to SF and loves every minute of it. You can follow his food adventures on Twitter @foodie_keith.