Digital Dirt
Digital Dirt refers to the personal information you include online about yourself.
Digital Dirt includes photos, blogs, discussion boards, chat rooms, group memberships, music and links. Digital Dirt may be deemed inappropriate by a recruiter based on their corporate or academic culture.
Ask yourself the following questions when analyzing your digital dirt:
- Does this accurately represent me?
- Do I feel comfortable having colleagues, potential employers, or patients view this content?
- Does it reveal too much personal information that I would be uncomfortable sharing with the public?
Recruiters Use of Search Engines |
Yes |
No |
Do you use search engines to uncover information about candidates? |
74.7% |
25.3% |
Have you ever eliminated a candidate because of information you found on the internet? |
26.4% |
73.6% |
Two Types of Digital Dirt:
|
 |
Steps to help you clean up your online identity
» Search Yourself: Combine various terms including your name, professional name, employers, industry/field, and school affiliation. Type your name in quotes “John Jones” for best results. You should also repeat this using Google, Yahoo, Bing and other search engines. NOTE: If you have a Linkedin, Facebook, or Twitter account those sites will appear first. To avoid this you need to adjust your privacy settings.
» Set Up a Alerts: Helps you keep on top of your online identity allowing you to quickly do damage control . Try Google Alert, Yahoo Alerts & Social Mention. NOTE: Alerts do not work as well if you have a common name
» Update Your Friends in Facebook/Twitter and Linkedin: Periodically review who you have as “Friends” in your social media accounts and delete names you would prefer no longer being privy to your information. NOTE: The person never receives a notification that you have deleted them from your account.
» Adjust Privacy Settings: Always read and understand the sites privacy settings and try using “customize settings” to allow you the most control of your profile . Make sure that it accurately displays how you wish your content to be published as public or private. NOTE: Even after you delete content or deactivate your account the material still resides on Facebook’s servers.
» Dual/Multiple Online Identities: Create multiple accounts for your business, professional, family, friends and school identities. The goal is to keep your personal life separate from your professional persona. Avoid entering an online relationship with patients and revealing health information. NOTE: If you wish to remain anonymous and use an online pseudonym remember not to include personal information that can easily be linked back to you.
» Bury Your Digital Dirt: If you are unable to remove your digital dirt you can bury it by taking advantage of search engine algorithms and page ranks and simply flood any search with your name with positive online content. NOTE: If you create a blog, Twitter, Facebook or Linkedin account or post comments on someone’s social media site this will come up first in a search under your name. The more you create the deeper you will bury you “dirt” in search results!
Links on Digital Dirt:
Facebook video: How to update privacy settings
FINS Technology: Your Twitter Feed Could Get, or Lose, You the Job
BBC: Google boss Eric Schmidt warns on social use of media
Atlantic Journal-Constitution: Facebook and Teachers - Still a potentially dangerous combination for your career
CollegeGrad.com: Entry Level Job Seeker, Google Thyself!
ABC News, Tory Johnson: Dusting Your Digital Dirt
Lawyers.com: Keep Digital Dirt from Derailing Your Job Search
MSN Careers: Cleaning Up Your Digital Dirt
CNN: Digital Dirt Can Haunt Your Job Search
Women for Hire: Create Your Digital Identity
Monster Blog: Clean Up Your Digital Dirt
Out at the plate: Pirates dump outspoken pierogi
Stealth Mode: Making Yourself Invisible on Facebook
The New York Times: Social Media History Becomes a New Job Hurdle
