Groups, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights organization, derided the practice.
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Natalie Weinstein is an associate editor who works out of Austin, Texas. She spent a decade as a reporter and editor in the newspaper industry before joining the CNET News staff in 2000. E-mail Natalie. |
The background check form stated: “Please list any and all current personal or business websites, web pages or memberships on any Internet-based chat rooms, social clubs or forums, to include, but not limited to: Facebook, Google, Yahoo, YouTube.com, MySpace, etc.”
The city stopped the practice as of midday Friday, until it “conducts a more comprehensive evaluation of the practice,” the release said.
City Manager Chris Kukulski noted to KBZK TV that information wasn’t sought until “you were conditionally offered the job.” The passwords already received will remain the city’s confidential property, the CBS affiliate reported.
The extent of our request for a candidate’s password, user name, or other internet information appears to have exceeded that which is acceptable to our community. We appreciate the concern many citizens have expressed regarding this practice and apologize for the negative impact this issue is having on the City of Bozeman.
According to a press release (PDF) issued Friday:
“I think it’s indefensibly invasive and likely illegal as a violation of the First Amendment rights of job applicants,” EFF attorney Kevin Bankston told CNET News earlier this week. “Essentially, they’re conditioning your application for employment on your waiving your First Amendment rights…and risking the security of your information by requiring you to share your password with them…Where does it stop? How about a photocopy of your diary?”
Bozeman to job seekers: We won't seek passwords
The city of Bozeman, Mont., has rescinded its long-standing policy that job applicants provide user names and passwords to social-networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.
Bozeman, which is about 100 miles north of Yellowstone National Park, found itself in the international spotlight this week when the local media reported that the city government’s background check included evaluating job candidates’ suitability based on their social-networking site postings. The city had been doing so for a few years.
(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)
Think MTV will help you find others who share your opinions on important topics.
(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)
My Starbucks Idea My Starbucks Idea is a community of coffee lovers who have the opportunity to share their ideas for improving Starbucks with the company.
MetroTwin MetroTwin is powered by British Airways. But instead of just connecting users who love to travel, the site takes it one further by allowing folks in both London and New York City to discuss and review their favorite hangouts.
Once you complete your profile, MetroTwin immediately asks you to start discussing your favorite places in New York or London. You can see reviews, add your own, or just find out which restaurants, bars, and hotels are worth checking out. There’s little British Airways branding (which is a plus). And I really like the site’s design. But since there are so many competitors in the space, I’m not convinced it’s a site worth joining.
(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)
2. Disney: If you’re looking to have some fun with your social network, Disney is for you.
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After you sign up for My Starbucks Idea, you can view ideas or share your own idea. Once you decide to share your thoughts, you’ll only need to input a title and description. From there, it will be posted on the site’s home page. Ideas can be “favorited” by other users. They can also comment on the idea. eBay Neighborhoods have some groups worth joining. Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has written about everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Don is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and posts at The Digital Home. He is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure. eBay Neighborhoods eBay Neighborhoods is a collection of groups of eBay users who communicate, review products, upload content, or just discuss the topics of their choice. Disney Disney’s social-networking efforts provide a unique experience by appealing more to children than adults. Think MTV If you’re looking to get involved in social activism, Think MTV is the branded social network for you. It highlights important issues on topics ranging from discrimination to human rights. Disney lets you do a lot with your page. My top 3 1. Think MTV: Think MTV highlights some tough issues. More importantly, it makes you think. ImSaturn If you’re a Saturn car lover, ImSaturn might be the place to be. This well-designed social network has thousands of members that spend time discussing their cars, what Saturn plans for the future, and uploading photos of their “rides.” Like most social networks, you can become friends with other users, comment on status updates, and view (and upload) videos. ImSaturn also lists events for Saturn lovers to attend. You can even join groups. (Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET) Branded social networks After you sign up for the social network, you’ll be given the opportunity to create your own “page.” There, you can add videos, audio, games, widgets, and a variety of other elements to make your page your own. Think of it as a custom home page. As you might expect, most of the elements you can add to your page are Disney-branded. So, you can have a “101 Dalmatians” background or play a “Pirates of the Caribbean” game. Once complete, you can check out other users’ pages, chat with friends, or join groups. It’s a powerful service and it’s well-designed. 3. My Starbucks Idea: Who wouldn’t want to decide how Starbucks does business? ImSaturn has some groups that you can join. Once Starbucks’ employees pick some of the better ideas, they’ll present it to the company’s key decision makers. If it’s implemented, users won’t get compensation, but they will get credit on the site. |
(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)
Branded social networks offer more than ads
At their core, branded social networks are a marketing ploy by firms to keep you interested in their products. So, be aware that if you join one you will need to deal with some annoying advertisements. But if you want to join another community of people with similar interests, start with some of these services.
My Starbucks Idea makes it easy to share your ideas.
MetroTwin will show off a bunch of places worth checking out in London and New York.
(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)
After signing up for eBay, you can easily join one of the company’s neighborhoods. Those neighborhoods range in size from a few members to thousands of members that center on topics ranging from coffee to sports. The members in each group engage in discussions on those subjects. They can also review products and post blog entries. Some of the bigger neighborhoods have a lot of activity, while others have little activity. Either way, eBay Neighborhoods isn’t a bad place to communicate with people who share your interests.
Once you sign up for the site, you can follow what’s going on in those spaces, discuss those issues with others, and form groups to help combat the problems. The site also provides links to political action organizations, so you can have your voice heard. It’s a really nice site that provides insight into hot-button issues. Check it out.
Then you can save money to re-sign Frankie, give various people raises & long-terms, and extend Vlad.
1B: Kotch
Here’s hoping Brandon starts at 3B, and Figgy plays 2B, until Maicer gets his back straight. I wanna see the kid hit!