Illinois Social Media Law

08/02/2012

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Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2012, Gov. Pat Quinn signed into law, a bill giving Illinois employees and prospective employees more rights. That law makes it illegal for employers to ask job applicants for passwords to their online profiles.  

The law, which is an amendment to the Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act (820 ILCS 55/10), takes effect on Jan. 1.  It protects both current employees and prospective hires. Notably, the legislation, does not stop employers from viewing information that is not restricted by privacy settings on a website. Employers are also free to set workplace policies on the use of the internet, social networking sites, and email.

The only other state with a similar law is Maryland.  However, several other states are considering similar bans, including Washington, Delaware and New Jersey. Additionally, two federal bills have been proposed.

This legislation was a response to a recent trend where some employers started asking for prospective employees's passwords to their personal accounts on social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter. 
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Federal Bills Regarding Social Media

06/21/2012

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Congress has recently introduced bills that, if passed, would place a nationwide ban on employers asking employees and applicants for login information.

The first bill, H.R. 5050 (Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y.), called the Social Networking Online Protection Act ("SNOPA"), would prohibit employers from requiring or requesting that employees and job applicants provide a user name, password, or other means for accessing a personal account on any social networking website.  The bill also prohibits colleges and universities from requesting the passwords of current or prospective students.

The second bill, (Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.), called the Password Protection Act ("PPA"), was introduced in both the Senate and the House.  The PPA is an amendment to the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act which would prohibit employers from requiring or requesting access to employees’ online personal accounts or password-protected computers, provided that they are not the employer’s computers. PPA would also prohibit employers from taking adverse actions against employees for refusing to disclose passwords. Under PPA, employees would also be eligible to receive compensatory damages and relief in court if their employers violated the act.

SNOPA and PPA remain in committees.
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IL Facebook Law One Step Closer

05/29/2012

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The Illinois legislature approved a bill after a unanimous vote in the Illinois Senate that now is waiting for Gov. Pat Quinn to sign into law.  The bill protects employees and prospective employees from having to provide social media passwords to current or prospective employers.

If signed, Illinois would join Maryland as the first states to implement such a law.

Read the proposed law here.
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Employers Requesting Job Applicants' Facebook Passwords

03/28/2012

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There has been a recent flurry of concern, nationwide, about employers asking job applicants for their Facebook passwords so the employer can look around.

In response, Illinois has tried to pass legislation banning that activity. Democratic Rep. La Shawn Ford proposed a bill that would allow potential employees to file lawsuits if asked for access to sites like Facebook. Employers could still ask for usernames that would allow them to view public information on the sites. The bill is HB3782.  However, the bill is on hold in the Illinois House. Ford says wants to protect employers as well as employees, and he will work on the language and bring the bill back for a House vote. Find the current status at: http://www.ilga.gov/

Likewise, some US Senators have said that employers who seek applicants’ passwords could be violating the law. Two U.S. senators are asking the EEOC and Department of Justice to determine whether employers who act in this manner are violating statutes concerning computer use, such as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the Stored Communications Act.

Not surprisingly, Facebook has opposed the practice by employers. Facebook's chief privacy officer, Erin Egan, urged users not to share their passwords. Egan further warned HR departments that asking for the passwords could open companies up to unanticipated legal liability.
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