Digital footprint time bomb
The lack of knowledge about one's own digital footprint poses risks for one's career because employers are increasingly interested in this information. At the same time, the conscious use of such information offers opportunities to present oneself in a positive light, for example, when looking for a job. According to a recent XING study, both risks and opportunities are underestimated.
Only 6% of the women surveyed say they control their digital footprint.
Only just under one in ten German-speaking Swiss regularly check what can be found about them on the Internet. Yet almost one in three has already discovered undesirable content about themselves. Risky: One in four people under 30 posts private content on online networks, such as revealing pictures that employers are not allowed to see. This is the result of a representative study commissioned by the professional online network XING.
Personal information available on the Internet is influencing more and more areas of life. Whether it's a future employer who scans the social media profiles of candidates for incriminating content before hiring them, a new acquaintance who obtains background information online before a second date, or a neighbor who prefers to get to know his counterpart better in a noncommittal way through Google instead of chatting in the stairwell.
There's no question about it: our digital footprint, as the sum of this information is also called, is gaining in importance.
A conscious approach to information can create new opportunities in professional life. The following are the key findings of the representative study conducted by the opinion research company Marketagent.com AG on behalf of XING:
Different motives
Not even 10% of the German-speaking Swiss regularly check their digital footprint, for example by searching for their own name in Google. 50% say they rarely check their information when they think of it by chance. 24% have checked their digital footprint only once and 17% have never even bothered to check what information about them is publicly available on the Internet.
Overall, men are more concerned about their virtual appearance. 13% of them state that they regularly search for information about themselves on the Internet. The figure for women is just 6%.
Unwanted content
There are certainly reasons for regularly checking the information we leave behind on the web. 30% of respondents have already found information that they would rather not see publicly on the Internet. Of course, the remaining 70% also include all the people who did not search at all.
Those who found it were mainly annoyed by personal details that were no longer valid and outdated social media profiles, followed by content that was published without consent.
Sitting on a "digital time bomb
26% of respondents in the age group up to 29 said they had already shared content online in their private lives that their employer was not allowed to see. The most common sins: photos that are too revealing, pictures with people you'd rather not be associated with professionally, and shots where you've obviously had too much to drink. Older age groups play it safe and are less likely to post content that could later become a problem.
In addition, women are on the whole more careful than men when it comes to sensitive content. Of them, 90% refrain from writing anything that might upset the employer. The figure for men is only 77%.
Conclusion: Swiss fail to recognize the relevance of their digital footprint for their careers
Two-thirds of German-speaking Swiss (66%) do not believe that their activities in online networks influence their professional careers. A fallacy, experts warn. Danica Ravaioli, Head of Human Resources at Adecco Switzerland, says: "Information that is publicly available on the Internet forms part of the overall picture we get of potential new employees. It's not even so much about possible negative content, but rather the opportunity to stand out from other candidates through interesting online profiles and an overall positive digital footprint."
According to Stefan Poth, Managing Director of smart.heads and lecturer in personal branding at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (HWZ), it is precisely these opportunities that are still being underutilized:
"Maintaining a profile in professional online networks is worthwhile. Particularly in the direct search for candidates, headhunting, more and more research is being done via digital networks, and an up-to-date and appealing profile is crucial here. The results of the survey therefore surprise me. Apparently, there is a gap between the perceived relevance of the digital footprint for the job search and the relevance that can be observed in practice."
This perception gap is particularly large among female respondents. 75% do not believe that their activities in online networks have any influence on their own careers.
