If you want a job, Bozeman wants your logins and passwords

[ElkHunter]

I could smell the jet fuel from that post. Nothing like JP4 or 5 burning up.

[HoneyLamb]

In yesterday's Arizona Daily Star newspaper. E-chip for passports. Did anyone read about this? And, how it took a guy 20 mins to hack all the info on some random person's passport. From 20 ft on the streets of SF. All he needed to do this was some $190 Motorola something he bought on E-Bay. Now that's scary. Bad enough if it's our own govt., but the alternative seems worse. Goodnight friends!

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by HoneyLamb

In yesterday's Arizona Daily Star newspaper. E-chip for passports. Did anyone read about this? And, how it took a guy 20 mins to hack all the info on some random person's passport. From 20 ft on the streets of SF. All he needed to do this was some $190 Motorola something he bought on E-Bay. Now that's scary. Bad enough if it's our own govt., but the alternative seems worse. Goodnight friends!

Yeah, we've been trashing the whole concept on Slashdot for a couple years now. RFID tracking of CITIZENS?? Excuse me??! Surveillance on Americans keeps us safe from foreign threats -- how??

As someone once put it, "Only a government that is afraid of its citizens tries to control them."

[gaduchman]

Originally Posted by Walter Greenspan

According to Bozeman City job requirement raises privacy concerns, the City of Bozeman is asking for all your login and password information on your employment application:

"'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."


H/T: Big Sky Blog

Sorry that's illegal - just as asking for your race and religion. If they do a "proper" background check - they'll find all of that and more. But they are cheap and do anything more than a police report.

[Timberwolf232]

Originally Posted by ElkHunter

I could smell the jet fuel from that post. Nothing like JP4 or 5 burning up.

I love that smell. (I settle for AVgas when I can afford to go flying these days..)
JP4 and even diesel burning reminds me of early mornings back in the day when all the vehicles and equipment were warming up at the motorpool. good times indeed.

[HighPlainsDrifter73]

As an outsider, I'm surprised that a state like Montana would ask for this type of information. I always viewed Montana as a state and its people as fiercely independent and suspicious of big brother. I feel the same way.

Hey, there's a workaround to this request. Don't put down the sites that you don't want to show them or create some fake ids for them. This might not be perfect, but that way they'll have something for their records.

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by HighPlainsDrifter73

As an outsider, I'm surprised that a state like Montana would ask for this type of information. I always viewed Montana as a state and its people as fiercely independent and suspicious of big brother. I feel the same way.

Hey, there's a workaround to this request. Don't put down the sites that you don't want to show them or create some fake ids for them. This might not be perfect, but that way they'll have something for their records.

Sure you could, but whenever you do a workaround like this, you've done TWO wrong things instead of just succumbing to ONE wrong thing:

1) You've given in to Big Brother, and

2) You've compromised your own integrity.

(And an employer thinks: "If you're willing to lie about this, what else might you lie about?")

[HighPlainsDrifter73]

Originally Posted by Reziac

Sure you could, but whenever you do a workaround like this, you've done TWO wrong things instead of just succumbing to ONE wrong thing:

1) You've given in to Big Brother, and

2) You've compromised your own integrity.

(And an employer thinks: "If you're willing to lie about this, what else might you lie about?")

Sure, I've given a fake account to big brother - big deal. If I don't get the job, I'll change the password. If I do get the job, I'll change the password after I'm hired on. On your second point, they compromised their integrity by asking for such information - right back at them.

Besides, most onlines sites I have multiple ids anyway. One for taking care of regular business, the other for everything else. Unless they ask for ALL logon ids, you're not doing anything wrong. Give no more than what is asked for; any lawyer will tell you that.

[Timberwolf232]

Or, a person could just refuse to give out their passwords, explaining their concerns about privacy. Seems more honest to me than lying about it. Maybe they would respect your integrity and waive the requirement.

Actually, after all the press Bozeman stopped this practice.

[Desertrose34]

Thank goodness they stopped.