Social media appears to be growing in functionality beyond being just a way for friends to share interests. Marketing professionals, for example, generally accept that getting their product or service shared and discussed among connected individuals is now a solid and preferred part of any business’ promotional plan. Facebook and Twitter have become an essential part of many marketing campaigns. 

The power of social media is also playing a factor in career development. Sharing career related tips, job openings, employer reviews, and more is occurring among trusted peers. But perhaps the most powerful advantage of social media is the way it exposes individuals to those sourcing and background checking talent. Each of us has the option of crafting our information and building dynamic profiles that reinforce the professional brand we wish to project. 

In fact, we are at the point where not having a robust presence on social media places us at a distinct disadvantage in advancing our careers. Remaining in the digital shadows could very well mean we do not get found by the very stakeholders we need to have find us to move forward. This phenomenon is particularly a problem for the older end of the workforce, who still do not accept or who harbor a mistrust of social media and its implications. 

Despite the growing advantages of leveraging social media for talent searchability it does raise a significant social issue that is increasingly becoming relevant, the value of individual privacy in the digital age. A disconcerting correlation is now evident — the more we increase our Internet presence the more we diminish our privacy. 

The web is becoming ever more invasive. Cookies that track our Internet use, location tracking apps, and other user-identification functions means others can and do store and re-purpose data about us. Simply using the Internet engages us in personal data sharing of some sort even though we rarely or ever give anyone permission to collect and use our personal information or Internet-use behavior. 

Maintaining some semblance of personal privacy in the Information Age may soon become the next big civil rights issue. What we now know is that keeping a relatively unregulated Internet yields individual privacy rights in favor of those with some degree of economic power and capital, i.e., big business. So, what is new? Power always seems to concentrate on the haves vs. the have-nots in an unregulated environment. In time we will see how it all turns out. 

There is a legitimate concern when we use websites for information gathering and research purposes that our personal data or web use is collected and tracked behind the scenes. The use of social media specifically is intentional sharing of information about us. When we essentially advertise ourselves online via social media, we have a harder time crying foul when we are found out. 

Each of us needs to weigh the potentiality of an Internet display with the concurrent erosion of anonymity. Although this is a very personal decision, the reality is that being searchable is a best practice in job searching and recruiting. 

Controlling what is known about you online with a professional-looking profile and website is the recommended way to go. Applying a 20th century concept of privacy to these times is not practical for career movers. At least to some extent we need to get over the privacy angst. However, each of us does need to advocate for stronger opt-in controls of what is displayed about us online. There should be options beyond no web involvement at all and full unregulated exposure. The Internet should serve us, not the other way around.