Facebook Can Ruin Your Life

Over at John Allsopp's excellent blog is a thoughtful piece on this shock expose from the super soaraway Independent. I agree that people who say the firm they work for is shit, or brag about drinking on facebook shouldn't be surprised if this comes back to bite them. It staggers me that people can be so dense as not to realise.

However, as far as privacy is concerned, if only friends can see details, how are employers able to check what's on there? Or are all the people bragging about drinking and how shit their employer is also daft enough to have open profiles? I've been digging around trying to find out without success.

I know that since joining I have received an unsolicited "friend" request from a bloke I don't know - and I don't think he's one of my friend's friends, so how did he know I exist? There's nothing sinister about that in itself - we were all strangers before we were friends of course.

I am lucky enough not to need to worry too much what an employer might find on my blog or Facebook because:

I work for myself
I don't blog under my own name
My Facebook profile doesn't use my real name

I do this because before I worked for myself I did have to worry about what Employers might make of my trenchant views on the government's diabolical ID card scheme, for example.

I did, however, want to blog about this and other stuff. I still do, and since my blog isn't really for much other than my own interest (I never did manage a diary so this is as close as I'll probably ever get), I don't care to shout about who I am.

One thing I did think was a little sinister though, and I hope it's not serious:

Update: A friend made this excellent point: "Will job opportunities be withheld for not having a site? Socially disinterested, inhibited, no friends?"

It's an excellent point, but I hope it never becomes reality. I mean, thinking about my close friends:

Mrs Urko (actually we're not married, but no matter) Highly qualified IT project manager - no interest in Facebook.

K&M - have an Internet connection but rarely use it. Both highly qualified engineers and good pals. No Interest in Facebook.

P&H - Have an Internet connection (business has a web presence), both highly qualified in IT, one still works in IT the other in own non-IT business. No Interest in Facebook.

D&L Highly sucessful at doing what I've just started doing (IT contractor) over a number (10+) of years, had own e-commerce site more than 5 years ago - no interest in Facebook.

T&D - Lawyer and IT pro have an internet connection (indeed were successful in signing up most of their small village in order to obtain broadband). No interest in Facebook.

If any of these people were denied a job because they didn't have a Facebook presence, it would be more fool the employer.

By the way, I'm not anti-Facebook - I just haven't really worked out what it it's offering me yet. I guess I might get more out of it if I used my real name - although as outlined above, most of my friends aren't involved. But then everyone would know I can't stand Mrs Thatcher (to this day), June Sarpong or the late Ned Sherrin, and because some people can't get past the idea of an honestly held opinion, that could count against me.