Given the prominence of social media, it is unsurprising that businesses are increasingly integrating social media checks into their existing screening processes. In the UK, it is estimated that two out of five employers look at job applicants’ social media activity (CIPD).  

Given the risk to an employer’s brand that inappropriate employee social media activity can bring, Inkerman Screening advises its clients to conduct social media checks as part of their screening process, particularly for clients in sensitive industries or for applicants being considered for high-profile positions in their organisations. 

The Inkerman Screening team understands that social media verification can be a sensitive process. Social media research needs to be conducted with transparency and common sense, running checks that are reasonable and proportionate to the employment role applied for.  

For the purposes of background verification, we will only report on ‘open source’ information on candidates; we will not seek to ‘add’ candidates as contacts or directly solicit them via social networking sites to induce them to reveal information which they have not already chosen to make public.  

Our reports contain only data pre-agreed with our clients – red flags which are key to the recruitment process rather than all and any information encountered. Not only does this method separate the research from the employment decision maker, it ensures unbiased, factual reporting throughout the process.  

The Inkerman Group Screening provides several social media check levels, varying from standard checks to assess any reputational risk issues through to in-depth due diligence reports.