[Infowarrior] - Bozeman drops password requirement

[Richard Forno]

Bozeman drops password requirement

Posted: June 18, 2009 05:18 PM

Updated: June 19, 2009 07:27 PM

http://montanasnewsstation.com/global/story.asp?s=10558291&ClientType=Printable

A change in Bozmean's city hiring policy -- two days and one worldwide  
reaction after we broke the story, Bozeman will no longer ask  
applicants for social networking user names and passwords.

"Effective at noon today the city of Bozeman permanently ceased the  
practice of requesting that candidates selected for positions under a  
provisional job offer to provide their usernames or passwords for  
candidates internet sites," said Chris Kukulske, Bozeman City Manager.

Kukulski says after a 90 minute staff meeting held earlier today,  
officials decided asking applicants to provide their passwords to  
sites such as Facebook or MySpace, "exceeded that which is acceptable  
to our community."

Kukulski apologized for the negative impact the issue has generated  
from news organizations and blogs around the world.

He says this information was never required at the time of application.

"This was a question that was asked after you were conditionally  
offered the job."

He says the city also is suspending the practice of viewing any  
password protected information.
The city will continue using the internet as part of background checks  
to judge the character of applicants, and although the city will stop  
asking for passwords Kukulski says the passwords already given by  
previous applicants will remain the confidential property of the city.

UPDATE: As of 12:00 p.m. on Friday, the City of Bozeman discontinued  
the practice of requiring potential job candidates to supply user  
names and passwords for any social networking site to which they  
subscribe to, such as like MySpace or Facebook.

We'll have more on this developing story during the 5:30 News on  
Montana's News Station.

City of Bozeman Press Release

For Immediate Release:

The City of Bozeman believes we have a responsibility to ensure  
candidates hired for positions of public trust are subject to a  
thorough background check. The extent of our request for a candidate's  
password, user name, or other internet information appears to have  
exceeded that which is acceptable to our community. We appreciate the  
concern many citizens have expressed regarding this practice and  
apologize for the negative impact this issue is having on the City of  
Bozeman.

Effective at 12:00 p.m. today, Friday June 19, 2009, the City of  
Bozeman permanently ceased the practice of requesting candidates  
selected for City positions under a provisional job offer to provide  
user names and passwords for the candidate's internet sites.

In addition, until further notice, the City will suspend its practice  
of reviewing candidate's password protected internet information until  
the City conducts a more comprehensive evaluation of the practice.

Since the initial media inquiries, the City of Bozeman has been  
reviewing the practice of requesting user names and passwords to  
access a candidate's internet sites. Today's decision to terminate the  
use of passwords and usernames in this process reflects the City's  
commitment to reconsider this practice. In addition, today's decision  
to suspend the practice of inquiring into a candidate's password  
protected internet sites demonstrates a continued commitment to ensure  
the City's hiring practices comply with state and federal law and  
protect the safety of Bozeman residents.

Chris A. Kukulski

City Manager

Bozeman city officials held a 90 minute, closed door, meeting with  
city staff on Friday morning to discuss the controversy that's erupted  
over a policy that asks city job  applicants to supply user names and  
passwords for any social networking site to which they subscribe to,  
such as like MySpace or Facebook.

Information about what was talked about during the morning meeting was  
not released to the press, however the city has slated a 3:00 p.m.  
news conference, which will be held in the Bozeman City Commission Room.

We spoke with the Montana Attorney General's Office on Friday morning  
to get their take on the issue and a spokesman told us that they can  
not offer information or statements on the issue unless they are  
contacted by Bozeman city officials. The spokesman added that so far  
that officials have not yet contacted their office.

We'll have more on this developing story during the 5:30 News on  
Montana's News Station.

(from June 18, 2009)

One a minute - that's the rate at which emails are arriving in the  
email inbox belonging to the City of Bozeman's attorney in response to  
a story about the City requiring that job applicants hand over login  
information and passwords for social network sites.

A story aired on KBZK Wednesday and by Thursday, city offices were  
being deluged by people outraged about the matter.

At the heart of the uproar is a requirement included on a waiver  
statement applicants must sign, giving the City permission to conduct  
an investigation into the person's "background, references, character,  
past employment, education, credit history, criminal or police records."

Montana's News Station was alerted to the requirement by an anonymous  
viewer who emailed the station to express concern with part of the  
City's background check policy for job applicants, which states that  
to be considered for a job, applicants must provide login information  
and passwords for social network sites in which they participate.

"Please list any and all, current personal or business websites, web  
pages or memberships on any Internet-based chat rooms, social clubs or  
forums, to include, but not limited to: Facebook, Google, Yahoo,  
YouTube.com, MySpace, etc.," the City form states. There are then  
three lines where applicants can list the Web sites, their user names  
and log-in information and their passwords.

City attorney Greg Sullivan who was interviewed in the first story  
said he met with the human resources department Thursday and the  
matter is being discussed.

Officials said they are looking into the legality of the requirement.  
They also said they are looking into Facebook's policies.

The City heard from Fox News, NPR, CBS and ABC Thursday. It has also  
received a lot of negative reaction from the public.

City Manager Chris Kukulski says Bozeman stands by the policy of  
looking at social network pages of applicants. He said it's important  
for judging the character of future police, fireman and other employees.

But Bozeman resident Michael Becker has problems with how the city  
views that information. He sent an email to Sullivan Thursday with 14  
questions on the legality of the practice.

Asking for passwords is not just an invasion of privacy, Becker said.

"Well, first of all it is a violation of Facebook and MySpace's terms  
of service. Both of them prohibit giving out your password to a third  
party, right in the terms of service, the one's you agreed upon when  
you signed up for the site. So that's not illegal, but it is a  
violation of their terms of service. So by giving your password to the  
City of Bozeman, you're placing your account in Jeopardy," he said.

Bozeman City Hall isn't the only place where the requirement has  
become a hot topic. It has ignited a heated response on the social  
networking site Twitter where people are tweeting vigorously about the  
requirement.

Comments on Twitter range from the outraged to the snarky.

"Note to self, don't apply in Bozeman for a city job," one person wrote.

"It could be worse :) City of Bozeman could partner with Dept. of  
corrections and issues ankle bracelets to all employees," said another.

"Interview comment #817 ‘I'm sorry, according to the 'Which Vegetable  
Are You' quiz, you are a turnip. We can't hire turnips,'" one person  
wrote, making reference to Facebook quizzes.

As of 10 a.m. 6,454 people had voted in a poll on www.kbzk.com asking  
"What do you think of the City of Bozeman requiring job applicants to  
provide social network site login and password information?" So 6,347  
people have voted "I'm against it - It's an invasion of privacy," 62  
people have voted "I'm for it - It's important for the City to judge  
the applicant's character," and 45 people have said they don't care  
either way.

News Web sites and bloggers from around the world are also picking up  
the story.  Slashdot, The Guardian, Computer World and celebrity  
blogger Perez Hilton are just a few of the places where the  
requirement has gotten noticed.