[chmac]

This only applies if you leave your profile public to anyone. Otherwise, they'd have to friend request you first!

It's the same as publishing anything publicly, people can run background checks on you and find it. That's life.

As an employer, I'd be suspicious if somebody's online profile presented a completely different (beer swilling, rock partying) image than their resume. You can't be two people after all.

[german]

I see your point, but I think people just don't put those things in their resumes. Have you ever seen a resume with: I like to spend my weekends drinking beer in a rock party or in the other case: I spend all my weekends in church.

Of course that no one would go drunk to a job interview, but that doesn't mean that he/she doesn't drink at all.

Sure, you can't be two people, but many people have separate lives between work and home.

[nickb]

I agree with your view as well. I am an employer and if i had an option about learning more about the candidate, I think I would take an option to learn more. Since you're constrained by law about what you can and cannot ask during an interview, learning more about the candidate would be a great way to see how she/he'd fit into the organization. If you're proud of your MySpace and Facebook and you want everyone to be able to see it, I don't see why you shouldn't look for the person on FB/MS.

[german]

I really don't get your point, your telling me that you would look for something in MS/FB that you can't legally ask in a job interview? There's another factor there, it is that FB/MS profiles can be configured to suit in a determined job, so you may be hiring someone that tricked you.

[nickb]

Sure, why not? Can you ask whether someone's an alcoholic or a drug user during an interview? Of course not. Can you ask whether they're married? No.

Well, you can bullshit only so much in FB before your friends call you on it. And who knows you better than your friends?! So I'd be more worried about being fed bullshit during an interview than looking at a social site.

[german]

You got a point there. We still have different opinions about that issue, but you're right, FB could be a tool, some people use it, some don't. One last question: Do you think is important having a FB profile? What about 2 candidates for a job, but only one has a FB profile. Will that affect your decision?

[nickb]

I don't think that having a FB profile is important. I don't have one myself (for many reasons, privacy being the first one) but I see why so many people have one and I would never fault anyone for using FB. As for your second question, I think it really depends. If both of the candidates are "equal" in your mind (and I have to admit that I've never had that problem), FB can both help and harm. It all depends on who you are and what you have in there :).