Professional profile consistency
Keep, with conditionsThe vendor says: “LinkedIn and GitHub activity that matches the résumé confirms claimed skills and projects.”
The six questions
- Pass1. Is it related to the job?
Checking that claimed projects and skills exist is directly related to the job.
- Pass2. Does it stand in for who someone is?
No link found to a personal characteristic.
- Concern3. Is it the right person?
The vendor finds profiles by name search, which can match the wrong person. Using only links the candidate supplies removes the risk.
- Pass4. Did the candidate publish it, and would they expect an employer to use it this way?
Professional profiles are published so that employers will read them.
- Concern5. Does it work equally for everyone?
Tier-3 college students are less likely to have GitHub portfolios, so absence must not count against anyone.
- Pass6. Is there a less intrusive way?
No less intrusive way to learn the same thing was identified.
Otherwise keep the signal, with a condition for every question that raised a concern.
- Use only profiles the candidate has linked in their own application.
- Absence of content must be treated as neutral, never as a negative.
- Tell candidates in the application notice that this check is made, and let them respond to any adverse finding.
Evidence
The Act does not apply to personal data that the person it relates to has made, or caused to be made, publicly available, or that someone is legally obliged to publish.
Where personal data is likely to be used to make a decision that affects the person, the data fiduciary must ensure its completeness, accuracy and consistency.
European regulators' guidance on employee and applicant data. Employers should not assume that a public profile may be processed simply because it is public; screening must be necessary and relevant to the job, and applicants must be told.