Social Media Screening

Social media screening is a background check process that reviews a candidate’s publicly available online presence (think Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, blogs, etc.) for their behavior that might be relevant to their employment. Unlike a casual glance at someone’s profile, a professional social media screening is conducted carefully and in compliance with laws to avoid discrimination and to focus only on job-relevant information.

ScoutLogic’s social media screening solution uses FCRA-compliant methods to search for things like evidence of violent, bigoted, or illegal behavior, or other conduct that might pose a risk to a company’s reputation or workplace safety. We help employers see if a candidate’s online behavior aligns with the company’s values and policies, while protecting the candidate’s rights and privacy.

In the digital age, an employee’s online behavior can impact the workplace and a company’s brand significantly.

Protect your company’s reputation. If a new hire has a history of posting deeply offensive content (like hate speech or harassing others), and that comes to light publicly, it can severely damage your organization’s reputation by association. Social media screening helps you avoid hiring someone who could bring that kind of backlash.

Foster a safe, inclusive workplace. You want employees who contribute to a positive work environment. If a candidate routinely bullies or harasses others online, or if they express extreme prejudices, that attitude could carry into the workplace and harm team cohesion or even lead to discrimination or harassment issues internally.

Identify potential security or liability risks. Social media screening adds an extra layer to identify risks that traditional checks might not reveal. This can prevent hiring someone who could pose a liability. Also, if someone is very loose online with confidential information, that might indicate poor judgment about data privacy. Also think of roles with security clearances or handling sensitive info; their online persona could show risky behavior or associations that matter. 

Comply with emerging best practices. More and more companies are adopting formal social media checks. The formal approach provides a fair and objective process by reviewing only public, job-relevant content and not considering protected factors to reduce bias.

ScoutLogic provides social media screening with a careful, professional touch that stands out.

Human and AI hybrid analysis. We utilize advanced algorithms to scan for key terms and images across various platforms, and data is reviewed by trained human analysts before reporting.

Strict protection of protected characteristics. Our service intentionally filters out and do not report on things like a candidate’s age, race, gender, religion, family status, sexual orientation, etc., By cutting out anything that’s not job-related, the report focuses purely on conduct.

Detailed yet digestible reports. If there are findings, we present them clearly with the content, the date, the platform, and context. We might have screenshots or direct quotes, and we categorize results by the type of issue. If nothing negative is found, we often issue a report that simply says no concerning content found in our search categories. We can also customize parameters if you have particular things you care about, so our reports are clear, concise, and tailored to your values.

Global and multi-lingual reach. Social Media can cover region-specific platforms if access is available. Many services might skip non-English content, but we try to capture it if it’s public and relevant. That said, we stay within legal limits. Some countries have stricter privacy, so for international hires we adjust accordingly.

Adverse action support & candidate conciliation. If we find something and you decide not to hire based on it, similar to credit reports or criminal checks, FCRA adverse action rules apply. We will supply the candidate with a copy of the social media report and their rights, giving them a chance to dispute.