Online Job Search Privacy
Web job sites generate revenue by selling "employers" access to their resume databases. Access is usually sold to anyone who can pay the price, with minimal screening done to ensure that the purchasers actually have jobs to fill.
So, your complete work history, education, and contact information are available to anyone who can pay the access fee -- employers, recruiters, sales people, scammers, identity thieves, etc. What are the risks of not protecting your privacy?
A. If you have a job and your employer finds your resume online, you could be fired.
Employers have always viewed job-seeking employees as "disloyal" - potential risks for taking clients and/or confidential information to a competitor. In most cases, firing you for job hunting is perfectly legal in the United States.
B. Someone could steal your identity.
Identity theft is the #1 online fraud in the United States, according to the FBI. Your resume has almost everything necessary to take over your identity and your credit. If your Social Security Number ("SSN") is on your resume in the U.S., an identity thief has everything they need - so don't put your SSN on your resume!
C. You may be buried with "spam" (bulk unsolicited commercial e-mail) as well as direct marketing to your home or business.
So even if you don't have a job to protect, you probably don't want your e-mail inbox filled with junk mail, your phone ringing in the middle of dinner, etc.
D. Someone interested in harming you can find you easily.
Your resume, with completed contact and employment information provides vital information for them to find you. This is why you should use a cyber-safe version.
E. Ethically-challenged, commission-based recruiters may ruin job opportunities for you. (Commission-based recruiters get paid their commission - typically a percentage of the annual salary - if a candidate they referred is hired.)
Without your knowledge or permission, the recruiter may "shop" your resume around to employers. Why is this NOT good?
* Because you and your experience may be misrepresented, giving the employer a bad impression of YOU.
* If you have sent that employer a resume yourself, you could lose out on a job because the employer may not want to hassle with the recruiter over a commission payment that may, or may not, be due to the recruiter.
* You will be more expensive to hire than someone else with the same salary, because of the commission due to the recruiter.
* Your resume may be so widely distributed that it becomes "junk mail," reducing your market value.
Note: All recruiters are not bad. A good recruiter, one who knows you and works with you to find appropriate opportunities, can be a big help. In some fields, and at some levels (like executive and senior management), recruiters paid by retainer (vs. commission) are THE source of job opportunities. (See John Lucht's RiteSite.com for a list of true executive recruiters.)
F. How do you protect your privacy when job hunting online?
Look for, and READ, Web site privacy policies!
If the site does not have a privacy policy, do not use the site! There are thousands of job sites - find another one. Read job site privacy policies!
NOTE: a privacy seal (e.g. TRUSTe or BBBonline) does NOT mean that a site is "safe" to use - it just means that they disclose what information they collect and what they do with it.
a. Limit the personal contact information (name, address, phone numbers) on your resume.
Yes, it may make you a little more difficult for an employer to reach you. But it also makes you look more Internet-savvy, and it protects you and your family from the risks above. Your choice.
b. Be picky about where you post your resume. (See JobCloud.com's "Choosing a Job Site" section for help.)
Post your resume only where you are reasonably sure it will be protected, at a site with your preferred employers or the best job listings for you. Focus on posting at a few really good sites rather than many mediocre sites.
c. When the option is available, choose to limit access to your complete resume, unless you are using the cyber-safe version of your resume.
Most job sites allow you to choose the level of visibility for your resume. The levels can include:
* Completely open. Anyone (job seeker and employer/recruiter) can see your complete resume. This is the least secure, and least desirable, option. Avoid these sites, or be sure to use the cyber-safe version of your resume if you feel you must use a site like this.
* Searchable by "employers" only. Employers/recruiters, or anyone willing to pay the fee for access to the resume database, will see your full resume. Good for marketing your skills and experience to employers, but don't take the risk unless you are using the cyber-safe version of your resume with your contact information disguised or deleted ("cyber-safe").
* Semi-private, searchable but with your contact information blocked by the job site. Employers/recruiters (or anyone willing to pay) can see everything on your resume, except your contact information. If a potential employer is interested in you, the job site notifies you about the employer's interest so that you can contact the employer. Good for marketing your skills and experience and good for your privacy, too! Use the cyber-safe version of your resume here, too, just to ensure that your contact information is safe.
* Private, your resume is excluded from the searchable resume database. This provides you with the most security and privacy, but doesn't allow an employer to find you. It would be the safest option for someone who is employed and protecting his or her job.
d. Keep a log of where and when you posted your resume on a job site or employer Web site.
It doesn't have to be fancy, just effective. A hand-written list with the date and site will work. If possible, keep track of which version of your resume you posted (helpful for updating and tracking contacts). It will also enable you to end your job search after you land your new job.
e. Don't use resume distribution services!
You completely lose control of your resume, whether it is distributed via e-mail or posted to a number of Web sites. You don't know who has it or what they might do with it, and it makes you look desperate and/or inexperienced.
If you feel that you absolutely must use a resume distribution service, distribute only the cyber-safe version of your resume.
f. Don't provide your Social Security Number or your mother's maiden name to anyone approaching you about a potential job.
A person with a copy of your resume and your Social Security Number has everything they need to steal your identity - the #1 fraud, according to the FBI. Don't help them by providing that last bit of information. There is no reason to include your SSN on your resume!
Many credit card issuers use your mother's maiden name as a "password" identifying you to them, so someone with that name can access your credit card accounts (to get cash, etc.).
If a stranger approaches you (via phone, e-mail, or regular mail) claiming to need a little more information to do an employment "background check," "prescreening," or something similar, and asks you for your Social Security Number or your mother's maiden name, do not give it to them. This approach has been used by identity thieves to collect information from victims.
In general, the safest time to provide anyone with your Social Security Number is only when you are completing an IRS form at the employer's physical location, after you have accepted their job offer. Your SSN may, very rarely, be needed for a background check, but few employers spend the time/money for a background check on an applicant who has not been interviewed.
If the request feels "fishy" to you, follow your instincts, and don't provide the information they are requesting.
Don't be discouraged, but DO be careful!
