Privacy Software

Some people believe that there is no harm in always having your CV available online, just in case a good opportunity comes about. That line of thinking recently proved false, with Channel Register reporting:

A Russian gang called Phreak has created an online tool that extracts personal details from CVs posted onto sites including Monster.com, AOL Jobs, Ajcjobs.com, Careerbuilder.com, Careermag.com, Computerjobs.com, Hotjobs.com, Jobcontrolcenter.com, Jobvertise.com and Militaryhire.com. As a result the personal information (names, email addresses, home addresses and current employers) on hundreds of thousands of jobseakers has been placed at risk, according to net security firm PrevX.

Anything you post online is publicly available – for the good guys and the bad guys.

As far back as 2002 blogs started playing a role in employment. Both as a way for companies to find people they would like to hire, and as a means for employees to get fired! Heather Armstrong, who writes the popular blog Dooced was fired for a satyrical account of work at her dot com employer. The same fate was shared by bloggers who were temporarily employed by companies like Google and Wells Fargo.

In response to such firings and other privacy issues EFF created a guide on How to Blog Safely (About Work or Anything Else).

It appears social networks are now following the path of blogs, with Anglo Irish Bank intern Kevin Colvin calling off sick, and then posting his party photos on Facebook. That did not work out to well for him!