Employers use internet searches of social networking sites to filter out unsuitable job candidates

An overwhelming majority of recruitment consultants say candidates should think twice before putting information about themselves on the internet for fear of it affecting their chances of getting a job, a survey has found.

An online survey conducted by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, the body for the UK recruitment industry, questioned 298 recruitment consultants to gain a better understanding of how Web 2.0 is affecting recruitment.

Half of respondents believed that the MySpace generation has the potential to reduce the number of candidate placements through a recruitment agency, as workers use social rather than formal networks to find and apply for jobs.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

Email(Required)

OptOut

From time to time, we will send you emails about selected products, events and services from Personnel Today and OHW+ - but you can choose to opt-out at any time. If you do not wish to receive these emails, please tick this box.

Name

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ

Tom Hadley, REC director of external affairs, said: “As more employers take interview shortcuts and rely on internet searches to filter out unsuitable candidates, it’s vital that job seekers take their online footprint seriously and keep in mind that it could affect their job prospects.

“Before posting any personal details, candidates need to think twice about how an employer might perceive them.”