# Employers now demanding job applicants Facebook passwords **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 23, 2012, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569 "2012-03-23T01:43:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2012, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569/101 "2012-04-02T22:35:26Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > Now I’m really thinking about the guy on Facebook who has my (very uncommon) name. On one hand, he’s listed as living nowhere near me, but OTOH… OTOH, thank God I have an extremely common name 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569/102 "2012-04-03T00:28:44Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > So the prospective employer can’t base a hiring decision on the applicant’s age, but they could ask to make a copy of the applicant’s driver’s license, ostensibly to confirm their identity, and gain their date of birth as collateral information? Pretty much. Or in the case of hiring teenage workers, you can ask when they’re graduating and work out their age that way. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569/103 "2012-04-03T00:31:54Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > So the prospective employer can’t base a hiring decision on the applicant’s age, but they could ask to make a copy of the applicant’s driver’s license, ostensibly to confirm their identity, and gain their date of birth as collateral information? Yes, I think so, although they would have to be open to other forms of ID as well. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569/104 "2012-04-03T00:45:54Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Um… after passing laws that allow such, of course? Decent people tried to. [http://www.cbronline.com/news/republicans-turn-down-proposal-to-protect-jobseeker-facebook-passwords-290312](http://www.cbronline.com/news/republicans-turn-down-proposal-to-protect-jobseeker-facebook-passwords-290312) Republicans are against job seeker privacy. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2012, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569/105 "2012-04-03T01:29:15Z")
> [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](#): > > Decent people tried to. > > [http://www.cbronline.com/news/republicans-turn-down-proposal-to-protect-jobseeker-facebook-passwords-290312](http://www.cbronline.com/news/republicans-turn-down-proposal-to-protect-jobseeker-facebook-passwords-290312) > > Republicans are against job seeker privacy. Republicans seem to be against workers in general, or at least they seem to always favor employers over employees. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/employers-now-demanding-job-applicants-facebook-passwords/616569.md?page=5)