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How to Do a Social Media Background Check - On Yourself
If you find yourself in the job market, consider this: according to a Career Builder Survey, 70% of employers use social media to research job candidates when considering a hire. Nearly half of employers regularly check on their employees activity, and a third of employers have reprimanded or fired an employee due to negative content found online. If you’re still unsure about what social media screening is, click here for a thorough breakdown.
With this in mind, it’s quite likely that you will have your social media screened during your next job application. This begs the questions, what are they looking at, and will you pass the test? The easiest way to prepare your profiles for this is to get a social media report conducted on yourself first, so that you can rectify anything that may pose a risk. In preparation for this, we recommend:
GOOGLE YOURSELF
It may sound silly, but this is one of the best ways to see what information is online and relating to you. In order to do this effectively, you need to remember to search in a private tab, in what is usually called Incognito mode. This will provide an unbiased search result.
Make sure that you carefully sift through the results and act on anything which is incorrect or adverse, such as removing images, deleting old profiles, and contacting websites to remove personal information.
SCREEN YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT
Your social media profiles are likely to show up in a search before other content online, and if your profile isn’t set to private, potential employers will be able to see what and who you follow, what you like and share, and ultimately what kind of individual you are. Unfortunately, scrolling through all of your own content can take hours, so if you’re someone who shares a lot of content, it might be easier to let us take care of it so you don’t have to. It is worth noting that you should attempt to view your profiles without being logged in so that you can see what others would usually be able to see on your profile.
SORT OUT YOUR PRIVACY SETTINGS
This is one of the simplest and most effective things that can be done in preparation for a social media background check – and something which should be managed regardless. Social media screeners may only access information in the public domain, which means that they won’t be able to see your content unless you have made it public. High privacy settings is an advantage in a background check because it demonstrates a candidates knowledge and understanding of the platform and the risks involved in sharing your thoughts with the world as opposed to your friend and family.
UPDATE YOUR PROFILE PICTURES & NAMES
Due to the fact that your profile picture is featured in the public domain, we recommend ensuring that they are all representative of you and show a side of you that is favourable and approachable. It’s advised to refrain from using images of you with a group of friends, or your dog, but rather a simple picture which shows your face clearly. The same goes for your names and handles across different platforms – make sure that they’re professional.
BE MINDFUL OF WHAT YOU SHARE IN FUTURE
Due to the fact that your profile picture is featured in the public domain, we recommend ensuring that they are all representative of you and show a side of you that is favourable and approachable. It’s advised to refrain from using images of you with a group of friends, or your dog, but rather a simple picture which shows your face clearly. The same goes for your names and handles across different platforms – make sure that they’re professional.
Make sure that you consider how your actions online can influence your ability to land a job in future and be mindful of the kind of content that you share – it says a lot about you. Focus on sharing meaningful content, being authentic, having fun, and most importantly staying safe online. Don’t share anything that you wouldn’t say in front of a room full of people.
Once you are confident that your social and digital media presence is squeaky-clean, we recommend ordering a social media background check on yourself to identify any other things that you may have missed. Rather find them before it costs you the job.
Farosian offers 4 different social media background checks: Basic, Standard, Full, and High Profile. The differences are detailed below. Get in touch if you would like to find out more about pricing and options!
Email us at info@farosian.co.za for more information, or to order a report today!
