Class-Action Lawsuit Questions LinkedIn’s Validity Under the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act

 Posted on December 03,2014 in OVC Lawyer Marketing

A small force of four has waged war against LinkedIn, perhaps the largest web-based professional network to inhabit the Internet. The social network currently has nearly 300 million registered users. The recent class-action lawsuit, filed mid-October in California, alleges the professional social media network dedicated to employment networking violated consumer protection laws as mandated under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The basis of the suit targets LinkedIn’s reference search option that provides  premium level account holders with instant access to a report listing of possible “off the record” references of fellow LinkedIn members with only one swift click of a mouse.

By merely clicking on a prospective candidate’s profile photo and opting for the reference search function, the prospective employer is privy to a sortable list of additional members who worked under the same employer at the time of the prospective candidate. This questions the accessibility of an expansive list of possible “off the record” references, all without the knowledge and consent of the candidate.

The four plaintiffs argue this type of LinkedIn generated reference list is protected under the FCRA. Enacted in 1970, the FCRA was enacted to protect consumers against discriminatory hiring and lending practices due to unfair credit reporting practices by third party agencies. The class-action suit alleges LinkedIn’s reference search option lends validity as a fee-based third party entity offering consumer information with members protected by the reporting, accuracy and disclosure regulations under FCRA.

LinkedIn spokesperson Joseph Roualdes has addressed the lawsuit as one without merit and professes LinkedIn will fight the suit vehemently. He also noted the LinkedIn reference search report only lists those employees who were employed at the same time as the prospective candidate. Publication of any member’s non-public information is not available.

Although it may be easy to equate this suit and its practices as revolutionary, conceived during the age of social media technology, LinkedIn has only redesigned the wheel. Human Resource departments and recruiting agencies have long practiced the art of contacting unlisted references as a means to piece together a more concise picture of employment candidates

The outcome of this latest legal development in the expanding world of social media marketing is not whether LinkedIn offers this search function, but whether the candidate’s action of voluntary offering information will void the plaintiff’s complaint of establishing LinkedIn as a compensated third party reporting agency.

As social media expands into every aspect of marketing and advertising, it is imperative that all areas involved are closely monitored to ensure ethical practices. Working with members of the legal industry since 2008, the experienced team of OVC, INC. understands any possible hesitation to move forward with a social media marketing plan due to ethical concerns. Contact our office today at 630-635-8000 for information on how we can address your social media concerns.

About the Author: Greg Wildman is the President of OVC, INC. Since 1999, Greg has developed hundreds of websites for attorneys from his company's inception as Online Video Concepts, LLC to the modern era's OVC, INC. Greg's knowledge of law firm marketing has helped many attorneys establish online presences through custom website development, Search Engine Optimization, legal directory partnerships, social media marketing, content writing and more.