The Consequences Of Shoulder Surfing

Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Instagram are some of the popular social media that allows individuals to express their thoughts, opinions, or emotions on the internet. Most social media users are posting comments or images on their accounts letting them be connected to their acquaintances, friends, or followers. In some cases, it also allows prospective employers, colleges, or universities to screen their applicants via shoulder surfing. The essays “Twitter, Social Media, Reputation Management” and “The Implications of Shoulder Surfing” by Cynthia Andrzejczyk explore the ramification of an unintended self-incriminated posts and the controversy of shoulder surfing. Some institution believes that they have valid reasons to use shoulder surfing;

on the other hand, some believes that it violates people’s rights to free speech and to privacy. Although prospective employers, colleges, and universities have valid reasons to use shoulder surfing to screen their applicants, its not sufficient enough to violate people’s right to free speech and to privacy. However, without any protection against shoulder surfing, social media users should exercise caution when posting on their social media account to protect their future jobs, careers, or academia.
In the world of World Wide Web, social media users are at risk of shoulder surfing by their potential employers, colleges and universities. It is a form of investigation that allows them to monitor the online activities of their applicants (Andrzejczyk 383). In some cases, they demand applicants to give up their passwords on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, or other social media account in able to fully track their postings (Andrzejczyk 383). CNET News claims that one-third of employers will include shoulder surfing on assessing their prospective employee (Andrzejczyk 249). Consequently, if the individual truly needed the job, he/she would be forced to give access to his private social media account and a possible access to self-incriminated materials that may prevent him/her from getting a job (Andrzejczyk 383).
A growing number of employers, colleges, and universities presented valid reasons in utilizing shoulder surfing to screen their applicants. The Maryland’s Department of Correction justified the use of shoulder surfing as to prevent hiring people who have gang relations in order to protect the public (Andrzejczyk 383-384). Some colleges and universities justified shoulder surfing as to protect the reputation of their institution and their athletes to maintain school funding (Andrzejczyk 384). For instance, the University of North Carolina mandated their student athletes to have “at least one coach or administrator” to have access to their social media account to monitor their postings (Andrzejczyk 384). Also, the poll from the National Scholarship Provider Associate claims that 70 scholarship endowers will use shoulder surfing to choose their recipients in order to protect their reputations (Andrzejczyk 384).
On the other hand, those reasons are not sufficient enough to violate the people’s rights to freedom of speech and to privacy.

The First and Fourth Amendments of the US Constitution gave its citizen the protections to exercise freedom of speech and to privacy, respectively. Even though employer, colleges, and universities have valid reasons, shoulder surfing absolutely violates these rights. Opposition of shoulder surfing claims it as “unlawful form of eavesdropping” (Andrzejczyk 383). As Andrzejczyk states, it is not uncommon for people to post grievances on their social account (385). If people knew that their employers, colleges, or universities are monitoring their social media activities, not only it takes away their privacy, it could hinder their rights to express their feelings. Whether it may result to positive or negative outcome, as people may prevent people from committing poor choices, it is not relevant. Shoulder surfing is an absolute infringement of people’s civil rights (Andrzejczyk 385). However, as applicants was forced to give up their password account to gain jobs, education, and scholarship, they may be forced to waive the to freedom of speech and to

privacy.
People have to rely on themselves to protect their future jobs, careers, and academia since there is no federal law protecting them from shoulder surfing. As Erin Egan, the Chief Privacy Officer for Facebooks states, shoulder surfing is an infringement of the Fourth Amendment, and no one should have to give up their privacy for the sake of getting a job (Andrzejczyk 385). She may be right, but people needs jobs and education to have a comfortable life. Although birth of laws against this is getting a momentum, only the state of Illinois has an established law specifically against shoulder surfing (Andrzejczyk 385). Even though the legislators of Maryland had a drafted bill that would prevent prospective employer from shoulder surfing, it is still not passed (Andrzejczyk 385). Therefore, people must exercise caution when using social media to protect themselves from possible self-incriminated evidences.
Being a cautions social media user is a protection against shoulder surfing. According to a survey of Pew Internet Center, 56% of social media users severed some of their contact, 52% prevented others from accessing their profile, 36% deleted potential damaging comments made by their contacts, and 30% un-tagged their name from damaging images in order to protect their reputations (qtd. in Andrzejczyk 249). It shows that three or five out of ten people are using caution when using social media. They took the responsibility of protecting their future proactively. People cleaned their account to prevent any future damages. If there will be a time when they need to give a prospective employer an access to their account, shoulder surfing would not hinder them getting the job. In some cases, this can boost the someone’s chance of getting a job or scholarship. According to Andrzejczyk, one out four people received scholarship for “maintaining a positive self-image” (284). Hence, reputation management not only prevent possible self-incrimination for social media users, it may also result to positive outcomes.
Social media users must exercise caution when using Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Instagram, and other social media to protect themselves from shoulder surfing.

Prospective employers, colleges, and universities have valid justification for shoulder surfing; however, it does not take away the fact that it violates the right of a person to free speech and to privacy. Because no federal law and only the state of Illinois have protection for social media users and applicants against shoulder surfing, they must rely on themselves to protect their future through reputation management. People should be aware that the right to express our thoughts, opinions, and emotions—either on face-to-face interaction, letter, or internet—have an accompanied risk and responsibilities. People might vent angry feeling on their social account, but they have to realize that they are putting their reputation at risk and its their responsible to protect themselves from its potential

ramification.