Bosses warned of social media vetting

Irish company bosses may be breaching the Data Protection Act by checking out potential employees’ social media pages, an expert has warned.

James Arnold, managing director of the Donegal-based company Employment Vetting Bureau Ireland, said there is a major difference between personal and professional browsing of people online.

It is estimated that up to 70% of employers around the world are scanning social media pages without an applicant’s permission to assist their pre-employment screening methods.