Facebook profile pre-screening? Thread poster: Yoshiko Fujiwara
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Yoshiko Fujiwara 
Japan
Local time: 20:25
Member (2016)
English to Japanese
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A translation agency requested me to provide my Facebook account to join a project.
Later, they said it was used for "Facebook profile pre-screening."
I asked the details, but there was no reply.
Does anyone know what it is, and which information is used?
| | | | Kevin Fulton
United States
Local time: 07:25
German to English
| If you already have a Facebook account, send the URL | May 14, 2022 |
I assume the request for a link to your Facebook page is a means of verifying your identity. It's probably less harmful than asking for a copy of your passport or other personal identification.
A lot of people around the world have the same/similar names, so providing the URL for your page isn't particularly dangerous, as with a little diligence the agency could find it anyway. But NEVER share your Facebook password or personal information accessible via the password.
My perso... See more I assume the request for a link to your Facebook page is a means of verifying your identity. It's probably less harmful than asking for a copy of your passport or other personal identification.
A lot of people around the world have the same/similar names, so providing the URL for your page isn't particularly dangerous, as with a little diligence the agency could find it anyway. But NEVER share your Facebook password or personal information accessible via the password.
My personal opinion of the request is irrelevant. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Yoshiko Fujiwara
Japan
Local time: 20:25
Member (2016)
English to Japanese
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Screened out | May 14, 2022 |
Thank you, Kevin.
I agree it is a very useful way to verify identity, and I can accept it if it is used for that purose.
However, I was already accepted as a linguist working for that company and agreed on the translation fee. I was screened out for some specific projects after submitting Facebook account.
So I wonder which information was considered ineligible. I do not want to reveal much information about me on social media. Can insufficient information ... See more Thank you, Kevin.
I agree it is a very useful way to verify identity, and I can accept it if it is used for that purose.
However, I was already accepted as a linguist working for that company and agreed on the translation fee. I was screened out for some specific projects after submitting Facebook account.
So I wonder which information was considered ineligible. I do not want to reveal much information about me on social media. Can insufficient information such as companies I worked for, etc. be the reason...?
Anyway, I think the criteria should be notified before recruiting, and the reason and which information they referred to should be explained.
Since I have not received a reply from the company, I thought someone might have some information about such cases.
[Edited at 2022-05-14 02:44 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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It seems to me a very strange way of screening translators! I would be screened out for sure as I don’t have a FB account…
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Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 13:25
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
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Yoshiko Fujiwara wrote:
A translation agency requested me to provide my Facebook account to join a project.
Later, they said it was used for "Facebook profile pre-screening."
In some countries, it is considered acceptable to discriminate against people for their private views. Many people use their Facebook pages for posting opinions about various topics and events, so this will allow them to see your views on these matters. In addition, a person's views are influenced by his friends or contacts, and your Facebook wall shows posts of your friends' opinions. All of this is useful in determining what kind of a person you are.
I don't personally agree that a person's private opinions should affect whether I hire them for a job, as long as they don't force their opinion onto me (which shouldn't happen if we're all acting professionally anyway). But with the rise of social media it has become "normal" for many people and companies to discriminate in this way.
There is a small possibility that they're trying to determine if you're a real person, on the assumption that if you are not using a made-up personality, your Facebook page would show a long history of posts. These people forget that not everyone who signed up for Facebook actually do things on Facebook.
| | | | Yoshiko Fujiwara
Japan
Local time: 20:25
Member (2016)
English to Japanese
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Privacy matters | May 14, 2022 |
Thank you Teresa and Samuel.
Yes, Facebook account was prerequisite, so you can't join if you do not have it!
But it may be a good way to protect your privacy in this era...
Being judged by opinions and contacts... I've never imagined worring about such things when doing my job! I hope personal opinions did not affect the hiring process, but noted that the information can be used in such a way.
The agency is in Europe (I believe privacy is strictly pr... See more Thank you Teresa and Samuel.
Yes, Facebook account was prerequisite, so you can't join if you do not have it!
But it may be a good way to protect your privacy in this era...
Being judged by opinions and contacts... I've never imagined worring about such things when doing my job! I hope personal opinions did not affect the hiring process, but noted that the information can be used in such a way.
The agency is in Europe (I believe privacy is strictly protected there and even if they can use personal information in some countries, it is rather difficult to do so because they can't justify), so I still hope they will get back with some reasonable explanation. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Two accounts? | May 15, 2022 |
It is a fact that some people have more than one account on FB although officially FB does not allow it Some have a second account under an alias. Sometimes they have a personal, private account and another for business contacts with slightly different variants of their name for each one (e.g. using one or two first names, or an inital instead of a first name).I could not imagine wanting either of these types of accounts to be available to a client of mine. My private life is irrelevant and shou... See more It is a fact that some people have more than one account on FB although officially FB does not allow it Some have a second account under an alias. Sometimes they have a personal, private account and another for business contacts with slightly different variants of their name for each one (e.g. using one or two first names, or an inital instead of a first name).I could not imagine wanting either of these types of accounts to be available to a client of mine. My private life is irrelevant and should be kept protected and my business contacts are confidential.
If you already have an account under your real name, possibly the client has tried to find you (depending on how unusual your name is and whether you have given any other information it may or may not be possible to find you), but has discovered that most of the content is only available to "friends". Then they are in effect asking you to befriend them! I would certainly not do that unless there was hardly any content on my account anyway. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Sadek_A
Local time: 15:25
English to Arabic
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| Unacceptable | May 15, 2022 |
Not just because they are:
- Violating your social life.
- Using a social aspect to help or bury a vocational aspect.
- Having a leverage on you, where you know about them much less than they know about you.
- And, a number of other reasons.
But, because this is clearly a remote job (right?), where things will be, and remain, strictly business.
If it was an in-house job, one might have supposed theirs is one of those places where the line between... See more Not just because they are:
- Violating your social life.
- Using a social aspect to help or bury a vocational aspect.
- Having a leverage on you, where you know about them much less than they know about you.
- And, a number of other reasons.
But, because this is clearly a remote job (right?), where things will be, and remain, strictly business.
If it was an in-house job, one might have supposed theirs is one of those places where the line between vocational and social is non-existent, and hence they're looking for the right material of a person from whom they can fear no judgment nor misunderstanding. Still, FB account is not the way to accomplish that.
Also, verifying your identity (if that's what it is about) is best done through comparing the details on your educational certificate/DL/national ID/passport with your bank info.
Yoshiko Fujiwara wrote:
Does anyone know what it is, and which information is used?
Only them can answer that. ▲ Collapse
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Kay Denney
France
Local time: 13:25
French to English
I would refuse to give my FB account. They can get all the info they need about me on LinkedIn, which is where I present myself professionally. On FB, I'm off duty. Not that I give much away, but some clients might find my taste in music weird, or my political opinions controversial, because I'm not all that conventional in either. Fact is, neither has any bearing whatsoever on my ability to translate their documents. I've never posted anything about classical Western music or jazz on FB, yet th... See more I would refuse to give my FB account. They can get all the info they need about me on LinkedIn, which is where I present myself professionally. On FB, I'm off duty. Not that I give much away, but some clients might find my taste in music weird, or my political opinions controversial, because I'm not all that conventional in either. Fact is, neither has any bearing whatsoever on my ability to translate their documents. I've never posted anything about classical Western music or jazz on FB, yet the jazz and classical musicians I translate for keep coming back, so I must be doing OK.
ETA I suppose I'd feel obliged to let them know that the person with my exact first and last names, living in Texas, and belonging to the Obama Haters Society, is most definitely not me... but still without specifying which of the remaining accounts with the same name is me.
[Edited at 2022-05-16 07:14 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Yoshiko Fujiwara
Japan
Local time: 20:25
Member (2016)
English to Japanese
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER | Received a reply | May 16, 2022 |
Thank you for your comments, Diana, Sadek_A, and Kay.
I received a reply from the client.
The account was used to know if I am an active user of Facebook or not.
The content of translation is related to Facebook, so I understand they need to know if I can refer to the details, such as how the buttons are translated in the target language, how the pages work and so forth. (Excuse me for not writing this first. It may have caused unnecessary concern... I thought I s... See more Thank you for your comments, Diana, Sadek_A, and Kay.
I received a reply from the client.
The account was used to know if I am an active user of Facebook or not.
The content of translation is related to Facebook, so I understand they need to know if I can refer to the details, such as how the buttons are translated in the target language, how the pages work and so forth. (Excuse me for not writing this first. It may have caused unnecessary concern... I thought I should avoid writing about a specific job.)
I'm still not sure what is the criteria to be an "active user" (I do not post often, I do not necessarily open Facebook everyday, and I seldom post to be seen by "Everyone." I haven't used some functions such as crossposting to Facebook and Instagram.), but I want to believe, and I think it is probably true that my opinions or contacts or groups I selected to follow did not affect the "pre-screening." It is so weird if that was the case, and they are irrelevant to my job.
I know a person who has created another account for dividing private from business. I haven't felt the necessity so far. I provided information that can specify my account, but I was not requested to be a Facebook friend. (I understand the opinion because some people want to increase contacts for promoting their business.)
[Edited at 2022-05-16 09:11 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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