The web is, literally, a-Twitter this week commentary upon commentary about whether or not job seekers should be compelled to give their social media user names and passwords to potential employers. The knee jerk reaction, of course, is “heck no” – for both privacy and information security reasons.

But in a world where sharing passwords is seen as a sign of intimacy and work and personal lives are increasingly intertwined, it’s not really that big of a stretch for potential employers to ask for your password. (And this is a good time to be reminded that using the same password for both personal and professional accounts – or reusing any passwords at all, is a bad idea. You might be giving your boss access to your accounts without even realizing it by using the same passwords). With individuals already putting so much information out for the public to see, the thin veil of privacy – even in the workplace – is getting sheerer by the day.

Personally, I wouldn’t ever give a current or potential employer any password to a personal online profile. I wouldn’t give it to a security clearance investigator, either, for that matter. But the reality is there’s really no need to have your passwords in order for someone to build a pretty solid online impression. Few people truly lock-down their social media profiles and a general impression – be it good or bad – is easy to form just from a cursory glance.

We can debate whether or not an opinion formed by a social networking site view is an accurate one, but it’s not a bad time to consider what you’ve been posting online recently. Working for the U.S. Army, and with military bloggers, in particular, I was pretty frank about the need to separate some personal opinions from online profiles. If you’re communicating in a private forum or are using very strict privacy settings, perhaps you can get by with flaming the president or making incendiary political or otherwise controversial statements. But even then you have to count on your friends not to carry the flame elsewhere.

If you work in government or the defense industry it’s generally a good idea to keep it clean. Now, I’m not going to say you can’t curse (even though your mom asked me to), but really stop to think about whether it’s worth it to call a certain political candidate or congressional member that particular name, and whether you’d like to be held accountable for that statement in an office-wide meeting.

Back when I worked for the Army, I stole a saying (because like all good orators I regularly stole my best lines) from a great military blogger – don’t say anything Osama, or your mama wouldn’t like. It was slightly more relevant before Osama met his end, but you get the idea. For security professionals there are clear rules about OPSEC – NEVER breach those online. Depending upon what your mom is like, there might be debate about that second one, so for way of illustration consider my own wholesome, God fearing, Iowa mama – if she wouldn’t like it, consider whether or not it belongs in a public forum that may someday be seen by your boss or a potential employer.

So, share your password? Not hardly. But stop to consider what you might already be sharing with a potential employer without realizing it.

Lindy Kyzer is the editor of ClearanceJobs.com. She loves cybersecurity, social media, and the U.S. military. She has a variety of controversial opinions about public policy but she tries her best to bite her tongue on line and save it for dinnertime conversation with her husband. Have a conference, tip, or story idea to share? Email editor@clearancejobs.com.

Related News

Lindy Kyzer is the director of content at ClearanceJobs.com. Have a conference, tip, or story idea to share? Email lindy.kyzer@clearancejobs.com. Interested in writing for ClearanceJobs.com? Learn more here.. @LindyKyzer