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Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

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Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#51
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Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many companies will share "eligible for rehire" status.

Is that legal in the US? And what is the sharing mechanism? Word of mouth?

Generally speaking employment references are free speech protected by the first amendment. So defamation isn't allowed, and any state's law would need to be tested in court for you to really believe in it.

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#52

In he-said-she-said situations, have a good story. Deflect: > Ha, yeah, I did no such thing, but they certainly want a scapegoat, don't they? So, when I was there, lemme tell you about their data security practices... Gain empathy: > Right, it's understandable that they'd want to blame somebody . And who better than me, walking out the door, going to spend more time with my family? And minimize: > But yeah, there's n…

> lemme tell you about their data security practices...

Yikes. As a sibling comment notes, this is a red flag. It actually makes you sound guilty -- especially if you share details about weaknesses in your security. That alone might be criminal, depending on circumstances.

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#53
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Earlier quoted context omitted.

Great advice there. As a hiring manager myself I really hate it when candidates slag off their current/former employeer. It's a real put off. However if you can turn a negative experience into a positive then it shows that you're not just bitter and/or a bad team player but rather that you use all experiences to help enhance your capabilities as a productive employee.

"As a hiring manager myself I really hate it when candidates slag off their current/former employeer. It's a real put off. However if you can turn a negative experience into a positive then it shows that you're not just bitter and/or a bad team player but rather that you use all experiences to help enhance your capabilities as a productive employee." What's wrong with being bitter when you are wronged by your manager…

The company doesn't care about you and your sad sack stories, it's not your therapist. All it wants to know is if you'll produce more value than you cost (and hopefully more than the other people they're comparing you against).

Being bitter about past employers is a sure fire way to fail an interview (from my personal experience) because a mopey employee is a poor performer, but it's also a lame way to go through life regardless.

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#54
The next company you hire, check middle-management out for the signs of paranoid delusions. Evil hackers, traitors and the even more horrific competition. On any signs of these - run. To those people anyone quitting is becoming part of a evil shadow organisation out to get them. You cant wint against that insanity, once it has money to burn.

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#56
> was a set of data breaches on the platform and the internal answer was to not announce it and put the blame on me

In Europe this could be a violation of GDPR not to report it. If so, they would hurt themselves more by spreading this.

https://gdpr-info.eu/art-33-gdpr/

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#57
post #43

Op here, Thanks for all the advice, its honestly be helpfull and eye opening. To clear up a few things. - The comments from the ceo were via text and more "I would of called you if i thought you did something" and "ill talk to them but I dont know what more I can do". TBH I was angry and not exactly cordial in my communication. - From what I understand the "hack" wasn't my credentials but someone logging in near wher…

It could be the CEO making the change and pinning the blame on you. That would seem to be the easiest explanation.

Make sure you tell them that they should contact law enforcement to report the breach. If they don't want to do that that would be a pretty good sign they know exactly who did it and that it wasn't you. If they credibly believed it was you they would have done so already.

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#58
post #49
post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is exactly what happened to me. I went from being a model "A-player" to "He was a C-player who needed to go". Don't think for 1 second the business will ever compromise itself for you. #3 is really important. Do not shy away from sharing your stories with your potential new employer. It helps them better understand who you are. If they care about you and the investment they are making in you, then they will want…

#3 can also backfire badly. Personally I would avoid it.

I think the point is that if #3 backfires at a particular company where you're interviewing, then you probably don't really want to be working for/with those people anyway.

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#59
post #29
post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that legal in the US? And what is the sharing mechanism? Word of mouth?

Varies by state, but legal in most places. Big companies have automated reference checking. Via truework or theworknumber, or similar. Which can also verify salary...urgh. https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/employee-...

>Which can also verify salary...urgh.

Isn't that illegal in several states, including California?

Re: Ask HN: Ex-Employer gossiping I “hacked” their platform – what to do?

#60
So in the US, for software engineering jobs outside of DoD related stuff...I have yet to be asked for references (even then I don't think I was for being hired, just for the clearance, and that was more personal than professional). I would actually view being asked for them as a warning sign, given how useless they are (speaking as a hiring manager).

I wouldn't worry about it from that perspective. If you need to you can point out that the company hasn't spoken to the police even when you reached out to them with concern over it, or retained legal counsel, or etc...but chances are really good it's going to be a non-issue for future employment.

If they do eventually reach out to police, and assert it was you, it will be more interesting. That said, it doesn't sound like the kind of thing where they'd have a particularly compelling case.

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