Glassdoor Users Speak Out: Personal Data Collected Without Consent
“I never provided my name during the sign-up process, but Glassdoor added it to my profile anyway.” – Monica
One of the leading websites for anonymous reviews of companies, Glassdoor, is under fire after users have come forward with claims that their personal data was collected without their consent. This includes their name and the city where they live being added to their profile.
The controversy began when one user, identified as Monica, shared her experience on her personal blog. She explained that Glassdoor customer support added her name and location to her profile after an email exchange, despite her never providing this information during the sign-up process years ago. To protect her privacy, Monica’s last name is not being published.
“My email ‘from’ line contains my full name – I never thought that would be a problem!” Monica told TechCrunch in an email. “They then added my name to my Glassdoor profile.”
Monica expressed her concerns to customer support, stating that she did not give her consent for this. However, Glassdoor claimed that adding her name was “required” and would not compromise the anonymity of her past reviews. But Monica argued that her anonymity could be at risk in the event of a data breach or legal action.
This sentiment was echoed by other Glassdoor users who expressed their concern for their own anonymity. According to TechCrunch, many are worried that their personal data collected by Glassdoor could be used or obtained without their knowledge.
One user, Josh Simmons, shared that his personal information was also added to his profile without his consent. “It’s a complete breach of trust,” he said. Simmons stated that he did not have any social accounts connected to Glassdoor and had not used the service in years, leading him to believe that his data may have been scraped or obtained from a data broker.
When asked about this privacy issue, Glassdoor provided a generic statement emphasizing their commitment to anonymity for their users. However, they did not address specific questions about how they verify the accuracy of the information they receive or how it can be used or obtained.
“User reviews on Glassdoor have always and will always be anonymous. In the Glassdoor community, users always have the choice to post with their name or post anonymously with their company name or job title.” – Glassdoor spokesperson
This controversy has raised concerns about the company’s recent acquisition of Fishbowl, a semi-anonymous professional social network site. As part of this deal, Glassdoor signed every user up for a Fishbowl account, potentially leading to a change in their terms of service.
According to Aaron Mackey, an attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Glassdoor has been an “industry leader” in defending their users’ anonymity. However, with the collection of more personal data, there is a higher risk of this data being compromised or obtained through legal means.
Some users, like Monica, feel that their only option is to delete their Glassdoor account in order to maintain their anonymity. However, this may not be a complete solution. According to Monica, simply deactivating your account does not fully delete your personal data. To fully delete your account and personal data, a specific privacy request form must be filled out on Glassdoor’s website.
If you have concerns about your privacy on Glassdoor or would like to learn more about this issue, you can contact this reporter through various means listed at the end of the article.
