By Clifford B. Geiger
Maryland became the first state to pass a law prohibiting employers from asking job applicants and employees for their usernames and passwords to social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. This move comes on the heels of an Associated Press investigation that detailed how many employers, including the Maryland Department of Corrections, were asking job candidates for access to social media accounts.
The law specifically prohibits an employer from requesting or requiring that an employee or job applicant disclose any user name, password, or other means for accessing a personal account or service through a specified electronic communications device, including a computer, telephone, PDA, and similar devices. Furthermore, employers may not refuse to hire applicants, nor may they take or threaten to take adverse action against employees, who refuse to disclose the usernames and passwords for personal accounts.