As a job seeker, what you post online could help you land a job or cost you an opportunity – so it’s worth knowing what employers are actually looking for when they scroll through your profiles.
This guide will walk you through what can make employers think twice about a candidate, what impresses them, how you can clean up your online image, and what rules companies have to follow when they’re looking at your social profiles.
Key Takeaways
- Employers screen candidates’ social profiles to identify red flags and assess individuals’ competence, professionalism, and fit for the job.
- Social media screening can be performed manually by employers through online searches or through third-party background check providers like iprospectcheck.
- Before applying to jobs, audit your social media accounts, adjust your privacy settings, separate your personal and professional social media accounts, and run a personal background check and social media screening on yourself to see what employers might see.
Why Do Employers Review Candidates’ Social Media Accounts?
An increasing number of people in the US use social media.
Additionally, 70% of employers research the social media profiles of candidates during the hiring process, mainly for the following reasons:
1. Identify Liability and Reputation Risks
Employees represent the company they work for.
Because of this, many employers review social media before hiring candidates to identify conduct that could increase the company’s liability risks.
Social media checks might also be used to spot a candidate’s behavior that could potentially increase the employer’s risk of internal theft, loss, or reputational damage.
2. Assess Cultural Fit and Communication Style
Employers work hard to build a positive workplace culture.
A strong culture increases employee morale and reduces turnover rates.
As a result, some employers research candidates’ social profiles to assess how well they might fit into the company’s culture.
3. Check for Resume or Work History Consistency
Many people list their employers and work history on their social media accounts.
Some employers compare the information candidates report on their resumes against what they claim online as a way to verify their honesty.
Because social media isn’t always reliable, employers often request employment verification when conducting employment background checks.
What Do Employers Look for on Your Social Media Profiles?
Red Flags
1. Illegal/unlawful behavior
Employers look for indicators of unlawful or criminal behavior, including posts and photos showing illegal drug use or possession of drug paraphernalia, underage drinking, displaying stolen goods, or bragging about engaging in other illegal activities.
This helps employers to screen out applicants who could place their companies, co-workers, and clients at risk of harm or theft.
2. Discriminatory conduct
An applicant who uses racist, sexist, xenophobic, or otherwise offensive language on social media would increase an employer’s liability risks if hired.
Discriminatory posts or comments quickly lead employers to deny employment in most cases.
3. Aggressive/violent behavior
Employers also look through candidates’ posts, photos, and comments to identify any aggressive or violent behavior, including threats, harassment, or violent images.
For example, a candidate’s threats on a post toward someone else because of political differences could make a prospective employer turn you down for the job.
Companies generally don’t want to hire someone who could threaten the safety of their coworkers and customers.
4. Inappropriate content
Inappropriate content, like explicit photos or suggestive posts, can quickly disqualify a candidate.
Companies want to hire employees who can be trusted to act professionally both at work and online.
5. Politically charged or divisive posts
When employers want to build cohesive teams, they need new hires who exercise good judgment and can work well with others despite differences.
Politically charged or divisive posts can signal to employers that a candidate has poor judgment and/or the potential to cause conflict in the workplace.
6. Unprofessionalism
When reviewing a candidate’s social media profiles, an employer will also look for signs of unprofessionalism.
These can include talking negatively about their current or former employers or coworkers or sharing confidential information.
7. Noticeable Spelling and Grammar Issues
Posts filled with spelling mistakes, grammar errors, or sloppy writing can signal a lack of attention to detail or weak communication skills.
Since strong communication is important in most roles, employers may see this kind of content as a sign that the candidate may not meet professional standards.
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Positive Attributes
8. Professionalism
If you typically use a respectful tone in your posts and are thoughtful in both what you say and how you respond to others, employers may see you as someone who will exercise good judgment at work and behave professionally with coworkers and clients.
9. Cultural fit
Social media posts often reveal a candidate’s personality, interests, and values, giving employers insight into whether the person might align with the company’s culture.
For example, posts that show collaboration, positivity, or a strong work ethic can suggest the candidate will work well with a team-driven or mission-focused environment.
10. Competence & creativity
A candidate’s professional profiles on LinkedIn with posts demonstrating thought leadership, combined with work samples or portfolios on creative sites can demonstrate to employers that they are competent and creative.
11. Follower count and influence
Employers hiring for public-facing roles might look for a candidate’s follower count and influence.
A strong, relevant audience can help employers amplify their brand.
12. Industry expertise
Candidates who share industry insights and commentary on social media might demonstrate their knowledge of the field to prospective employers.
How Employers Screen Social Media Profiles
Employers use a couple of methods to screen social media profiles:
1. DIY Social Media Checks
With DIY social media checks, managers or recruiters will manually search information the candidate has provided on their resume, including:
- Candidate’s name
- Candidate’s email address
- Candidate’s phone number
Using this information, employers typically start by checking:
- X (Twitter)
- TikTok
This information can help pull up a candidate’s social media profiles associated with their name, email, or phone number.
Employers might then review the publicly available information to look for red flags or assess the candidate’s professionalism and fit.
The drawback of manual searches for employers is how time-consuming it is.
Employers also might not obtain a comprehensive picture of the candidate’s online presence.
2. Third-Party Services
Many employers request social media checks as a part of their pre-employment background checks from third-party providers like iprospectcheck.
When an employer works with a reliable background check company for pre-employment screening and social media checks, the information they might obtain will be much more comprehensive and reliable than what they might uncover on their own.
When Does Social Media Screening Happen?
Employers often review social media after shortlisting candidates to gather additional insights that can support the final hiring decision.
In some cases, an employer might wait until right before they make an employment offer.
Finally, some employers request social media checks as part of their pre-employment background checks after making conditional job offers.
How to Prepare Your Social Media Accounts for Screening
1. Audit Your Accounts
Before you begin your job search, it’s a good idea to complete an in-depth audit of your social media accounts.
Go back for the last five to seven years and delete questionable posts and photos that you think might raise concerns.
2. Adjust Your Privacy Settings
Many states have social media privacy laws that prohibit employers from asking for your social media usernames and passwords, for you to open your accounts in their presence, or to add them to your contact lists.
In most cases, employers are limited to viewing what you have publicly posted on your own accounts.
When you adjust your privacy settings, you can prevent potential employers from combing through your social media accounts.
Keep in mind that employers might still see comments and likes you’ve made on public posts, so you should conduct yourself appropriately whenever you’re online.
Finally, employers can see your profile picture and cover photo even if you’ve increased the privacy settings on your social media accounts.
Make sure your profile picture and cover photos are appropriate and professional.
Avoid accepting connections or follow requests from recruiters or employers unless you’ve thoroughly reviewed and cleaned up your profiles.
3. Separate Your Personal and Professional Social Media Accounts
It’s smart to separate personal and professional social media accounts.
Set your personal accounts to the highest privacy settings. This is the account where you can have your friends and family as contacts.
Your professional social media accounts should remain focused on your industry and avoid commentary that could be viewed poorly.
Showcase your professional contributions, volunteer work, and community involvement on your professional social media account, and keep your posts positive.
4. Run a Personal Background Check and Social Media Screening
It’s best to know what an employer might find before you apply.
To do so, run a personal background check and social media screening with iprospectcheck to preview what employers will see.
Legal Considerations in Social Media Screening
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
When employers use third-party background check companies to conduct social media screens, they must adhere to the requirements of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
This federal consumer privacy law applies to both consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) that gather and report information and the employers who use it to make hiring decisions.
Under the FCRA, employers must notify applicants that they conduct background checks (including social media checks) and obtain their written consent before starting a search through a third-party provider.
If an employer learns something from a social media screen or other background check report that makes them want to deny employment, they must first complete the adverse action process before making a final hiring decision based on that information:
- Send a pre-adverse action notice to the candidate with a copy of the report that includes the problematic information.
- Give the candidate a reasonable opportunity to respond (typically five business days) with evidence that the information is wrong or that the candidate has since rehabilitated.
- If the employer ultimately decides not to hire the applicant, they must send a final adverse action notice and include a copy of the candidate’s rights under the FCRA and relevant state laws.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a major federal anti-discrimination law.
It prohibits employers from discriminating against job applicants and employees based on their protected characteristics, including:
- Race
- Color
- National origin
- Sex
- Religion
Other federal laws have since been passed that have added additional protected characteristics, including:
- Age (over 40)
- Disability
- Pregnancy
- Genetic information
- Gender identity
- Sexual orientation
- Citizenship status
One risk employers run when they perform DIY social media searches is coming across information about an applicant’s protected characteristics.
If an employer uses what they’ve learned from a social media screen to deny employment, the applicant might argue that the decision was based on their protected characteristics and file a lawsuit.
Employers shouldn’t base hiring decisions on information about a candidate that is unrelated to the job.
Instead, hiring decisions should be based on conduct that affects the candidate’s likely job performance.
Social Media Privacy Laws
The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) reports that 27 states have enacted social media laws that apply to employers.
While state laws may vary, most of these laws prohibit employers from:
- asking or coercing applicants and employees to give them their social media user names, passwords, and account information
- requiring them to open their accounts in the employer’s presence
- asking them to add a supervisor to their friends’ or contacts’ lists.
Employers can’t demand access to job applicants’ private social media accounts in these states:
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Rhode Island
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
iprospectcheck: Your Trusted Partner for Social Media and Personal Background Checks
Most employers today do some kind of social media check on job applicants.
This means you need to know what they’re looking for and what might show up when they search for you online.
At iprospectcheck, we help people get a clear picture of their online presence by offering professional background checks and social media screenings.
To learn more about our services or to get a free quote, contact us today: (888) 509-1979.
DISCLAIMER: The resources provided here are for educational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Consult your counsel if you have legal questions related to your specific practices and compliance with applicable laws.
FAQs
Can you be denied a job because of social media?
Yes, employers can choose not to hire you because of information they learn from your public social media posts or comments.
However, they must follow the law when reviewing social media information.
If they use a third-party background check company to perform social media screening, they must notify the candidate and obtain their written permission before a screen is performed.
Employers also can’t deny employment to you based on a prohibited reason learned from your social media accounts.
For example, an employer can’t decide against hiring you because of your age, that you have a disability, or are a member of a specific religion.
Does social media show up on background checks?
Social media doesn’t show up on routine background checks.
However, many reputable providers, including iprospectcheck, offer social media checks as an optional search for employers.
When an employer requests a social media check as part of their pre-employment screens, information from it will appear with the other reports included in the background check.
How far back does a social media background check go?
Social media screens aren’t limited by the FCRA’s seven-year rule.
However, most companies ask for information no older than the last five to seven years.
