here's the opposite -- a site where you google yourself and then comment on and reorder the search results, and then share it with potential employers. this requires you to be proactive, though. http://hitbio.com
I find this startup rather disturbing...
61–70 of 74 posts
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#62With tools like this I'll probably remain unemployable indefinitely as anyone with a subscription will find my quaint short stories. Written at a time of youthful tribulation they read like PKD with a sadistic streak. Or I could just get a new email, but then I'd have no audience and possibly miss out on some interesting conversation. 'So, the main character gags on a dildo laced with LSD?' 'Yes, sir, it's suppose to…
You do know that it's OK to have more than one email address, I suppose. But then, remaining unemployable probably has its upside too ;-).
Everyone should learn at an early age that they need at least two addresses; one for personal asshattery (leethaxor@gmail.com) and one for professional or semiprofessional correspondence (your.name@gmail.com). Only use the professional one for your professional correspondence (sending resumes) or signing up for mailing lists / whatever where you are going to be on your best behavior (an open source project's mailing list). Use leethaxor for whatever the hell you want.
On a similar note, use 'leethaxor' when posting your personal opinion in a comment / on a forum... if you make a comment / post in your real name, assume it will show up on the first page when someone googles your name (this actually happens a lot).
Preventing the need for your personal data to be removed is the best way of ensuring your privacy, rather than wishing you had never written that Harry Potter slash fanfic eight years ago under your real name.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#63If you have a first-class degree from a top institution, that's called "so what?". Spokeo fits in nicely I think, to answer the so what and offer a more rounded view on prospective candidates. It reduces asymetry of information and reduces the risk of adverse selection by employers. In my opinion, having a good qualification is not enough of a signal to being a good employee. It therefore provides essential informati…
".... People search is “the new black” ..." The data already exists so compiling it is a routine exercise. I wonder how this kind of service could be fooled or played or worse misattributed? "... Spokeo fits in nicely I think, to answer the so what and offer a more rounded view on prospective candidates. ... It reduces asymetry (sic) of information and reduces the risk of adverse selection by employers ..." It would…
I think your range of points on security, unverified information etc are all valid.
My viewpoint is about gaining a more rounded understanding for a person's character, i.e. using all available information on a candidate to try and build a more accurate representation of them.
If Spokeo are offering some sort of verification service such as those offered by Experian et al then I find this to be a flawed model.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#64The argument against this startup is the same argument that was made when Facebook introduced the news feed; namely, that there is a difference in terms of the privacy of merely having publicly available data and aggregating that very data. The argument has to be, the very aggregation of data is an invasion of privacy; the added simplicity is an aide to stalking and illegal/immoral in itself. This is sort of the 'see…
I actually want people to see my LinkedIn page. It's designed to get me hired. I don't have a MySpace page.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#65Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why? Last time I checked, nobody is putting your personal information online in a public domain for you.
Actually, they are. Or at least, if you've ever donated to any political campaign they are. http://fundrace.huffingtonpost.com/
The act of donating to a party is a public act though... unlike voting. You declare it on your tax return for goodness sake.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#66Earlier quoted context omitted.
Actually, they are. Or at least, if you've ever donated to any political campaign they are. http://fundrace.huffingtonpost.com/
The act of donating to a party is a public act though... unlike voting. You declare it on your tax return for goodness sake.
You don't declare them in your tax return. Donations to political campaigns are not tax deductible.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#67Earlier quoted context omitted.
The act of donating to a party is a public act though... unlike voting. You declare it on your tax return for goodness sake.
You don't declare them in your tax return. Donations to political campaigns are not tax deductible.
Hmm, I didn't know that. They are up here in Canada.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
You do know that it's OK to have more than one email address, I suppose. But then, remaining unemployable probably has its upside too ;-).
Everyone should learn at an early age that they need at least two addresses; one for personal asshattery (leethaxor@gmail.com) and one for professional or semiprofessional correspondence (your.name@gmail.com). Only use the professional one for your professional correspondence (sending resumes) or signing up for mailing lists / whatever where you are going to be on your best behavior (an open source project's mailing…
Yup, I figured this out around 1995, when getting my first hotmail account. Keeping your normal online persona psuedonymous means never having to say "I'm sorry." Of course, it's still sorta easy to leak personally identifying information, but at least it'll take some more sophisticated data mining to connect those dots; something like what this one hosted java connection-finder whose name I can't remember does.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#69Earlier quoted context omitted.
".... People search is “the new black” ..." The data already exists so compiling it is a routine exercise. I wonder how this kind of service could be fooled or played or worse misattributed? "... Spokeo fits in nicely I think, to answer the so what and offer a more rounded view on prospective candidates. ... It reduces asymetry (sic) of information and reduces the risk of adverse selection by employers ..." It would…
I think your range of points on security, unverified information etc are all valid. My viewpoint is about gaining a more rounded understanding for a person's character, i.e. using all available information on a candidate to try and build a more accurate representation of them. If Spokeo are offering some sort of verification service such as those offered by Experian et al then I find this to be a flawed model.
"... My viewpoint is about gaining a more rounded understanding for a person's character, i.e. using all available information on a candidate to try and build a more accurate representation of them. ..."
I'm not sure more data is better trying to verify a candidate. You can infer things by viewing a candidates flickr + twitter + blog but how do you know it is not being spoofed, manipulated?
On the Internet anyone imitate a dog.
Re: I find this startup rather disturbing...
#70Earlier quoted context omitted.
You do know that it's OK to have more than one email address, I suppose. But then, remaining unemployable probably has its upside too ;-).
Everyone should learn at an early age that they need at least two addresses; one for personal asshattery (leethaxor@gmail.com) and one for professional or semiprofessional correspondence (your.name@gmail.com). Only use the professional one for your professional correspondence (sending resumes) or signing up for mailing lists / whatever where you are going to be on your best behavior (an open source project's mailing…
The downside of this approach is that you have to mess up only once and accidentally create a connection between 'leethaxor' and 'your.name'.
And because you felt safe when posting as leethaxor, the result will be much worse than if you just posted sane stuff under your real name.