Washington State’s Proposed Employer Social Media Law: The Legislature Should Take a Cautious Approach — SB 5211

Venkat Balasubramani writes:

[Washington State’s Proposed Employer Social Media Password Legislation – SB 5211]

Eric previously posted on his concerns about California’s law restricting employer access to social media accounts. The Washington State Senate recently proposed a law (SB 5211) and it suffers from many of the similar problems.

Summary: The proposed law prohibits both public and private employers from requiring “directly or indirectly . . . as a condition of employment or continued employment,” that an employee or prospective employee provide any password “or other related account information” for the employee’s profile on a “social networking web site.” The legislation defines “social networking web site” to be any internet-based service that allows individuals to (1) construct profiles; (2) create lists of connections; and (3) view and navigate those lists.

Read his commentary on Technology & Marketing Law Blog.