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Montana City Requires Workers' Internet Accounts
Posted by
timothy
on Thu Jun 18, 2009 01:17 PM
from the are-you-now-or-have-you-ever-been dept.
from the are-you-now-or-have-you-ever-been dept.
justinlindh writes "Bozeman, Montana is now requiring all applicants for city jobs to furnish Internet account information for 'background checking.' A portion of the application reads, "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 article goes on to mention, 'There are then three lines where applicants can list the Web sites, their user names and log-in information and their passwords.'"
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[+]
News: Bozeman, MT Drops Password Info Requirement 163 comments
mcmoodle writes "Bozeman, Montana has decided that they don't want applicant personal information after all, citing a worldwide backlash on the issue:
'"Effective at noon today the city of Bozeman permanently ceased the practice of requesting that candidates selected for positions under a provisional job offer to provide their usernames or passwords for candidates' internet sites," said Chris Kukulski, Bozeman City Manager. ... Kukulski says after a 90 minute staff meeting held earlier today, officials decided asking applicants to provide their passwords to sites such as Facebook or MySpace, "exceeded that which is acceptable to our community." Kukulski apologized for the negative impact the issue has generated from news organizations and blogs around the world.' I didn't have any doubt this would be immediately squashed. Now I'm just curious as to how many personal accounts they actually went through!"
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WTF (Score:5, Funny)
They are seriously asking for people's passwords? If this some kinda of social engineering test where if you actually put them down you fail?
Re:WTF (Score:5, Insightful)
Ok, new plan:
1) Make up phony job.
2) Put up lots of "now hiring" signs.
3) Ask for online account information, passwords.
4) Massive credit card fraud -- chances are people use the same passwords for everything
5) PROFIT!
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Funny)
Or:
1. Head to Bozeman
2. Social engineer city employees (I hear they're all "easy")
3. Own the network
4. Profit!!!
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Informative)
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Re:WTF (Score:5, Funny)
I don't even know how to put my objections into words - I don't know where to start!
Start on Slashdot ... that's what the rest of us do.
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Re:WTF (Score:5, Insightful)
>Start on Slashdot ... that's what the rest of us do.
And end on Slatshot ... that's what the rest of us do.
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Funny)
I'm insensitive not incensitive, you insensitive clod!
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Insightful)
However, my beef is WAY more basic than that...why the hell are they asking for my internet information for in the first place!?!?
It is no ones business what websites I have up, or what forums I participate in...
What is this, the electronic version of submitting to a drug test?
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Funny)
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Re:WTF (Score:5, Insightful)
Since we all know that breaking a website's TOS is a felony [slashdot.org], any applicant who fills this form should be thrown in jail.
And whoever designed the application form should be charged with aiding and abetting a felony.
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:WTF (Score:5, Informative)
Depending on the union, you may just be exchanging one set of meaningless crap for another... like the union person at a conference I attended recently in which he couldn't leave the side of the computer unlocked so that people could plug cards in for testing purposes. He had to stand around for an hour and a half just in case he needed to unlock it. Or the TV unions in which you have your job and if you even touch a piece of equipment that's not on your list---even outside of work hours to lean how to use it---instant union grievance. Of course, the people who aren't jackasses poke fun at this and laugh about it, but there are enough people who take it seriously and crack the whip that it can make life for the workers genuinely unpleasant. And so on.
If unions were solely about collective bargaining, were entirely run by regular full-time workers (without significant time off for being the union boss or whatever), and were not designed around bizarre apprenticeship models dating back to the middle ages, there's no question but what unions would be great for workers. Unfortunately, enough unions stray far enough outside those lines that in many cases they are a worse taskmaster than the companies from which they are supposedly trying to protect you.
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Informative)
Unfortunately, enough unions stray far enough outside those lines that in many cases they are a worse taskmaster than the companies from which they are supposedly trying to protect you.
That's been my experience in the one union I was in. My working relationship with my employer was great...until the group went union (it was a done deal by the time I started working there). At that point, my boss became paranoid about being grieved for anything and everything, and therefore, the freedom I had had to just do what needed to be done disappeared. Two examples: 4-10 work weeks ("No, the Collective Bargaining Agreement specifies 5-8s for your position") and combining two 15 minute breaks and the 30 minute lunch break into a single lunch break of 1 hour ("No, the Collective Bargaining Agreement says that you have to be given a 15 minute break after 2 hours, a 30 minute lunch at four hours and another 15 minute break at 6 hours").
The Collective Bargaining Agreement that governs your workplace is truly a double-edged sword. It limits what your employer can require you to do, but it also limits what your employer can allow you to do as well.
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Funny)
Hey, that's the combination to my luggage!
Parent
Re:WTF (Score:5, Funny)
no problem, my password is hunter2
(I know I know... redundant... but still absurdly funny)
Parent
Give away your password... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Give away your password... (Score:5, Funny)
I have trouble envisioning a piece of paper large enough for all of my login accounts, let alone 3 lines. And I hope they understand when I just give 5 passwords at the top and tell them to keep trying for each site cause I don't remember which password goes with which account :|
Parent
Unpopular (Score:5, Informative)
According to the online poll accompanying the article, 98% of respondents think it's an invasion of privacy.
That's as big a landslide as it gets, folks.
Re:Unpopular (Score:5, Funny)
Well, technically, no. It could be 99% [1].
I mean, I get your point, but on a site filled with pedants, most of them highly attuned to mathematics, perhaps that wasn't the best choice of words.
[1] 99% is as big a landslide as it gets. 100% would mean the land was falling, not sliding. Assuming that the percentage in a landslide victory correlates to the slope of the surface the land is sliding along.
Oh crap... I've opened the door for the pedants to tar and feather me as well, haven't I?
*exchanges tinfoil suit for flame-retardant suit*
Parent
Re:Unpopular (Score:5, Funny)
Apparently, the third rule is that vikings don't have to close html tags.
Parent
Re:Unpopular (Score:5, Funny)
But if I lose any more than that...
See, significant digits fully explained by a Viking. What is it with you people, thinking Vikings don't have or need an understanding of the finer principles of mathematics as relating to raping and pillaging?
Parent
Re:Unpopular (Score:5, Insightful)
How are there even 2% that don't consider it an invasion of privacy?
They're the trolls who loudly proclaim "if you're not doing anything wrong then you have nothing to hide" regarding every privacy issue.
Parent
Re:Unpopular (Score:5, Insightful)
Look, the requirement is clearly illegal. If I was ever confronted with such a form, I'd simply write in the line "ACLU" with the phone number.
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User reaction == best part (Score:5, Insightful)
FTFA: "No one has ever removed his or her name from consideration for a job due to the request, Sullivan added."
Then they're getting exactly what they asked for. Considering that users will hand out their passwords for a chocolate bar, this sort of line doesn't scare me much any more. Is that sad or am I just bitter?
If pressed, I would consider handing out the *wrong* passwords, though; when they come back saying they couldn't log in, I'd alert it to the sites in question as a TOS violation, employment discrimination, etc..
Re:User reaction == best part (Score:5, Insightful)
That's an excellent point. It sounds like the city of Bozeman is setting itself up to be perfect target for social engineering. By selecting people who would put all of their usernames and passwords on a job application, they'll end up hiring people who would probably be just as happy to dole out information about their accounts on the city's network. Might be fun to see if whomever answers the phone at city hall would like to help "Tom from IT" resolve a printer issue by giving him her username and password.
Then again, maybe this is a clever way of not hiring people who would fall for that.
Parent
Worst Policy EVAR!!! EVER EVEN!!!! (Score:5, Insightful)
Real Opportunity (Score:5, Interesting)
1. Create Account with social site
2. Put name and password on app
3. Wait for it to be leaked and abused
4. Profit!
No need to get a job - this is like money in the bank.
Re:Real Opportunity (Score:5, Insightful)
Abuse it yourself and claim that the City did it!
Parent
My Klingon Keyboard (Score:5, Funny)
Sorry, we are going to have to let you go. (Score:5, Funny)
What else? (Score:5, Insightful)
Maybe my bank access info?
Keys to my house?
Maybe a beaver shot of my wife?
Re:What else? (Score:5, Funny)
Maybe my bank access info?
Keys to my house?
Maybe a beaver shot of my wife?
No. No. Yes, please.
Parent
Re:What else? (Score:5, Funny)
You might want to check my bank balance and a pic of my wife before you make that decision.
Parent
Yeah, pretty sure that's breaking the law (Score:5, Insightful)
There is a LOT of stuff that prospective employers can't ask you [hrworld.com] (race, sex, family status, disability, etc.). One of those things is asking you about social organizations you belong to (presumably because someone could derrive illegal information from this like your age, nationality, religion, etc.). Asking for your Facebook/Myspace/etc. information would almost CERTAINLY fall under this (since things like age/sex/etc. are standard categories on most social websites, and this information is supposed to be basically anonymous) and is really opening them up for a rather impolite visit from the EEOC [eeoc.gov].
I suspect that, in these hard times, it's just that no one has bothered to file a claim against them yet.
also... (Score:5, Funny)
Further instructions on the form:
16d. Please analyze your own handwriting for us, and supply a full report on whether the results show that you may be predisposed to workplace violence.
16e. Please build your own polygraph machine, administer the test to yourself, and let us know whether it turns up any proclivity for white collar crime.
Biased towards people who violate rules (Score:5, Insightful)
Most of those sites (if not all of them) probably state in the TOS that you are not to share your login information. So... they're asking people to violate their agreements, and won't hire people who refuse. For example, Facebook's Terms [facebook.com] section 4 item 6 states "You will not share your password, let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account."
Brilliant. If you want to bribe a city official, go to Bozeman, because they only hire people who violate policy.
Slashdot Account (Score:5, Funny)
User: Anonymous Coward
Password:FAH-Q
Re:Slashdot Account (Score:5, Funny)
Ah fucking god damnit! You bastard, gave away my account information!
Parent
You know what to do (Score:5, Informative)
I've just contacted the Montana ACLU Here [aclumontana.org]
The article links to a video interview with Greg Sullivan Bozeman City Attorney here [montanasnewsstation.com] (right side of page), who defends the policy.
His Contact info:
City Attorney Greg Sullivan gsullivan@bozeman.net 406-582-2309
What I just emailed off to Mr. Sullivan
Greg Sullivan
Your city's requirement for job applicants to provide a list of all personal internet memberships, logins, and passwords has recently come to my attention. I have just requested that the Montana ACLU investigate this policy as it seems a severe invasion of privacy. I have always appreciated the state of Montana's noble defense of the Constitution, exemplified with recent decisions by the state to support 2nd amendment rights. Your city's applicant policy is the exact opposite of what I'd expect from the state of Montana, and I would urge you to seriously reconsider this requirement.
Re:Passwords? (Score:5, Funny)
Ah, but it's perfectly safe. When you write your password out on the application form it comes out as ******!
Parent
Re:Passwords? (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Insightful)
Is there any level at which collective action (otherwise known as 'government') is a good thing? What is wrong with city jobs? Would you have the private sector take over all functions of government, on all levels? I would think, at the very least you would be in favor of a public police force to protect your property. No matter how many guns you have, someone has more, and is more willing to use them than you are. Fire departments are nice, too. As are public roads. In fact, I can't think of many things that city governments currently do that the private sector could do better. The private sector exists to give you as little value for your dollar as you can be convinced to accept. The government is an agent working on your behalf.
Parent
Re:City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Interesting)
The police force does not protect you or your property, they apprehend and hold for trial those who stole/damaged your property. That doesn't do you any good. The damage is already done.
Parent
Re:City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Insightful)
Really, who paid for their fire trucks? I seriously doubt it was done through standing at lights with a boot asking for spare change...
Many fire depts have volunteer firefighters, that much is true. But that's still a far cry from having a private fire department.
The police force does not protect you or your property, they apprehend and hold for trial those who stole/damaged your property. That doesn't do you any good. The damage is already done.
Not if the public presence of police deters a crime from happening in the first place. Much of police work is after the fact, yes, but some is definitively preventative as well.
Parent
Re:City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Insightful)
Wow, what's with the idiots marking anyone who says anything in favor of the existence of government a troll? No wonder America is so hosed right now.
The monied elite have so thoroughly confounded people to the point that they reflexively recoil from anything that promotes their own best interests with the delusion that by supporting only the wealthy and powerful (which is what you do when you remove government altogether), they are somehow defending a morality that is more important than their own well being and the well being of the overwhelming majority of their neighbors.
Yeah, I'm advocating for the well being of my fellow man. I must be some sort of -1 Troll...
Parent
Re:City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Insightful)
The private sector does EVERYTHING better, because it is done voluntarily. They don't force you to make a decision against your will.
WRONG! The private sector does not do things well when it requires massive integration and cooperation among many different groups to make a decent solution. Roads are the easiest example. Could you really imagine privately constructed, maintained and designed roads? One block this way, the next a different way. Would the private police and fire not do their job if you hadn't paid them? Isn't that covered under RICO?
Look, I'm all about free market, but to say everything is better in the private sector is just about as dumb as any other blanket statement (including this one).
Parent
Re:City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Insightful)
Government agents DO work on your behalf; at least, they do if your government doesn't suck. The Federal Government is (or should be) there to protect your rights and freedoms. State government is there to build roads and hospitals, and write speeding tickets to the rich morons in their Escalades who insist on driving at twice the speed limit on a snow-packed road endangering your life and property. Local governments are there to provide fire protection, police, etc.
If there were no cops there's no way in hell I'd stagger home from Felber's. I'm glad they're there to arrest drunk drivers and muggers.
The private sector does NOT do everything better. CWLP, my electric company, is city-owned. We have the lowest electric rates in the state, and it's not subsidized. I haven't lost power once since the tornados in 2006. When the two F-2 tornados tore up the town, everyone had electric service in a week or less, even though my neighborhood didn't have a single utility pole still standing.
A few months later a single F-1 hit the St Louis area, it took the Amerin corporation over a month to have everyone's electricity back on.
Crooks taking your money and liberty is BAD government. Start voting and maybe you can have GOOD government.
Anarchy always leads to monarchy, which is the absolute worst form of government.
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Re:City jobs are a bad thing? (Score:5, Interesting)
In every historical case, lack of collective action has lead to oppression of the working class by the owning class. What choices does a poor, non-owning class person actually have in a purely free market system? There are significant barriers to keep the poor from acquiring enough resources to become independent from the major resource holders. And as I mentioned, the labor market systematically undervalues labor. When all resources are owned, a non-owner has no way of being productive without an owner's consent. The owning class then owns the labor of that person. Slavery is the end result of anarcho-capitalism.
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Re:As offensive as this is... (Score:5, Insightful)
It's only going to deter people with average or above intelligence.
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Re:I call FUD (Score:5, Informative)
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