Who's poking around your Facebook profile? If you're looking for a new job, it could well be the HR boss considering your application.
A survey of HR and business managers in the United Kingdom has revealed almost a third (32 percent) search the Internet and check social networking Web sites to gather background and behavior information on potential recruits and existing employees.
Meanwhile, a quarter (24 percent) said they have been put off a new hire by what they found--with drunken photos and rude comments being the biggest turn-offs.
Use of Facebook et al as an informal resource on job candidates looks set to continue: of the 68 percent of business people who had not searched for data on would-be staff online, almost half (44 percent) said they are likely to do so in future.
The survey, which was commissioned by people search Web site yasni.co.uk, polled more than 950 HR people and business managers.
It's not just Facebook that can land a job-hunter in hot water: a significant proportion of Brits also appear to be willing to stretch the truth in an interview.
Research from jobs Web site Monster.co.uk has found close to a third (28 percent) of people admitted lying in a job interview and a further 14 percent said they have embellished the truth in the hopes of appearing better qualified. However more than half (58 percent) of those polled claimed never to have lied or stretched the truth to get a job.
Nick Heath of Silicon.com reported from London.
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