Dear Uncle Matthew,
People keep sending me ‘friend’ requests on Facebook and LinkedIn. I don’t really want to sign up for these social networking sites because I’m afraid that recruiters and colleagues will be able to look me up and find more about me than I would like. What should I do?
Yours sincerely,
- Strictly Analogue
Dear Analogue,
It’s only a coincidence that I read this Slate article yesterday after getting your email but I think it’s pretty interesting: Everyone else is on Facebook, why aren’t you? This gives plenty of good reasons for joining. Similarly, Guy Kawasaki makes a good argument for LinkedIn.
Both services give you extensive privacy controls which let you decide how much information you share and make public. Use them wisely and those dodgy party photos shouldn’t fall into the wrong hands.
If you’re really worried about privacy, check out the TUC’s Worksmart site and GetSafeOnline.org‘s advice on social networking.
When it comes to recruitment, there is a risk that without a positive online profile you might end up looking like you simply don’t ‘get it’ when it comes to new online technology.
Having said all of that, if you don’t want to sign up, that’s fine. No-one’s going to be offended. An friend invitation is extremely informal. It’s more like ‘have you seen this cool site’ than ‘do you want to marry me.’ If you don’t want to join a site or ‘friend’ someone, the etiquette is simply to ignore the requests.
Poke,
Uncle Matthew
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