Alexis Fernandez /Contributing Writer
Could you imagine living in a world without instant connection to friends and loved ones via Facebook updates, live Tweets and notorious selfies? Ironically, once the familiar turns strange it’s never really quite the same again.
Social media is so embedded into the fabric of our daily lives that we often forget what it was like before Myspace.
We turn to these interactive online communities to share specific moments in time or to express our deepest thoughts on a particular and we end up living out these digitally recorded lives which, some scholars have come to call generation like.
But what happens when it becomes more than a form of public display and a picture of your morning coffee turns into a deceive factor in your insurance rate?
According to a recent article by Evgeny Morozov in New Republic, he explains that the simple picture helps big data companies predict whether you might suffer from a heart attack in the near future and dictates your credit worthiness.
It appears that our pictures have become more than a recollection of good times and are now being used to assess our credit suitability.
Feel a bit outraged? Like you just lost some sense of privacy? Well, it gets worse!
If you’re looking for a fall internship and sent your application to a handful of companies, it’s most likely they’ll also be looking you up on social media.
About three-quarters of recruiters review applicant’s social media profiles when hiring and almost half of all employers do the same, in fact many reject applicants for what they find on Facebook.
Legally employers who check applicants online run a number of risks such as discrimination claims but realistically how can one enforce a law banning employers from looking up prospective employees?
Nearly, impossible.
So, what can you do? Take down any indiscrete posts you may have lingering around, untag yourself in any photos you don’t want your future boss to stumble across and finally, scrub your page with socialclean to keep your online reputation in order.
Unfortunately some things will have a digital trail forever given it may have been commented on or quoted elsewhere and so your only other solution then is to offer an explanation.
I know it sucks but I guess that’s what happens when we agree to the terms and conditions.
opinion@fiusm.com
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