With the ever-growing popularity of blogs and social networking sites like MySpace and Friendster, it's becoming easier for companies to find out everything they would ever want to know (and might be afraid to find out!) about current and potential employees. Despite the truly public nature of the WWW, many internet addicts don't seem to grasp the idea that their personal online business might adversely affect their professional lives.

Imagine you're the HR Director of a prestigious law firm looking to hire an Administrative Assistant. In walks Sally Sweet - a mild-mannered, intelligent young woman armed with a stylish suit and a fabulous resume. She seems a shoo-in for the position, but after she leaves your office, you decide to Google her. Much to your surprise, you find Sally's personal weblog which reveals all the gory details of her dating habits and many references to her penchant for "getting wasted" every weekend. After plugging her email address into MySpace's search function, you find her personal page, providing plenty of pictorial evidence of her fondness for alcohol along with sexually explicit comments from a variety of "friends." Sally's resume is still impressive, but does it matter? Sure, she graduated with honors and can type 75 wpm, but what about her character? Is this the kind of person you would want representing your organization? If you're like most hiring managers, your answer is a resounding "no."

Some would argue that this kind of online snooping is unfair. After all, many people use their blogs and MySpace pages as an escape from the real world. It allows them a little bit of "fame," and a chance to bring out other sides of their personalities. However, there is nothing wrong with a prospective employer doing a little digging. And if you've spread dirt all over the internet, it can easily be found. Fans of the web need to realize that their personal business online is anything but personal. And depending on the image being presented, something as seemingly insignificant as a MySpace page can derail career plans - fast.

It's possible that many bloggers don't even realize that they are sabotaging their own job-seeking efforts. Obviously, most employers who uncover unflattering information about applicants simply won't call them back. Since most folks on the job hunt are used to a certain amount of rejection and disregard, they might just think not getting the call is all part of the process or assume that they weren't qualified. Just a word of advice to all you web nuts - if you've been on more than 5 interviews and not one employer has bothered to call or write you back, you might want to think about retiring your "I Hate Work" blog or deleting your X-rated Friendster account.

Online shenanigans can't only prevent you from finding a new job - they can just as easily get you fired from your existing one. Terminations resulting from employees' internet activities have been popping up in the news left and right. Some examples of this rising trend include:

• The Automobile Club of Southern California fired 27 workers this month for posting messages on Myspace that were deemed defamatory to other staff and the business overall.
• A police officer from Watauga, TX was dismissed in May 2006 after an internal affairs investigation uncovered that his MySpace page contained adult humor, racial slurs and embarassing pictures showing the officer intoxicated.
• An Editor for The Palladium-Item, a small-town Indiana newspaper, contends that he was let go because he was caught checking his MySpace messages on company time and had created mild adult-humor content for his page.
• A Starbucks in Toronto fired a barista who posted a profanity-riddled post about an unnamed boss on a personal, supposedly anonymous, blog.

Not all companies have such harsh punishments for employees who maintain blogs or use popular social networking sites. Many still believe that there is a line between personal business and professional life. But these days, with businesses more and more concerned about brand positioning and public awareness, it comes as no surprise that bloggers behaving badly find themselves unemployed more often than not. It's easy for a company to replace an employee. It's not so easy to replace a client who might happen upon that employee's blog and take offense. Respecting an employee's right to blog is not worth losing business over.

There's nothing wrong with having a little online fun. If you love to blog, then blog. If you're addicted to MySpace, then space out. It's okay. Just use your brain. Think about the type of career you're in and whether or not your web presence portrays you in a positive light; one that is acceptable to your employer, your clients and your personal network.