Your friends are not the only people on Facebook anymore.

In an increasingly common trend, job employers and school administrators are logging on to the popular social networking sites to keep tabs on prospective candidates. What does this mean for the millions of young people who frequent these websites? A startling dose of reality for many – imagine losing out on your dream job because the interviewer found all those “crazy” college pictures posted for them neatly in public albums. Alan Finder discusses this phenomenon in his article “When a Risqué Online Persona Undermines a Chance for a Job.” He points out that users of Facebook and MySpace do not realize that once something is posted on the Internet, you can never have sole control over it again. Finder provides examples of many employers Google-ing would-be employees, only to find pictures of underage drinking, sexual rendezvous, drug use, and illegal behavior. It’s hard to refute picture evidence. Users of these websites also have the opportunity to list interests and activities. “Blowing things up” or “smoking blunts,” as mentioned in the article, is probably not the best face one can put forward.

This article should be a wake up call for the digital generation. It is almost impossible to keep something private on the internet. West Chester University made a slide show for the opening days of freshman orientation of all the people who formed an online group for getting “expletive-faced the first day of school.” Imagine walking in and seeing your face on the screen! Many popular figures and celebrities have also recently been embarrassed over the Facebook pages. Miley Cyrus, aka Hannah Montana, was blasted for risky pictures and online bullying. Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen came under heavy criticism for pictures of underage “Beer Olympics” online. These people have celebrity on their side…but most people my age can’t afford to lose out on employment because they handed over embarrassing evidence.