Why You Need a Legal Social Media Policy

McGrath,
L. (2015). Why You Need a Legal Social Media Policy. *Computer & Internet Lawyer, 32*(4), 7-10.

Part

The
risks associated with not having polices for advertising in social media is
summarized citing cases.  Organizations
should have social media policies that adhere to FTC guidelines and employees
need to be trained on the policies.

The
first case cited was the tweeting by Deutsche LA, and advertising agencies employees
about the Sony PlayStation Vita. FTC guidelines require those employees to
disclose in their social media that they were being paid to tweet endorsements
and there should have been a reasonable monitoring program to ensure the
disclosures were made.

The
second case cited when Nordstrom Rack gave influencers on Twitter $50 gift
cards in exchange for positive tweets about the store.  FTC guidelines require the disclosure in their
social media that they were being given cash or in-kind payments to tweet
endorsements and there should have been a reasonable monitoring program to
ensure the disclosures were made.

The
third case is Cole Haan’s Wandering Sole Pinterest Contest where people were
encouraged to create Pinterest boards and the hashtag “#WanderingSole” of the company’s
shoes in order to enter to win a $1,000 shopping spree.  The FTC finding was the contestants pins were
and endorsement of the company’s products and the incentive of $1,000 should
have been disclosed.

Part

Social
media account ownership the employee or the employer.  The Black Entertainment Channels Facebook
case was cited for the channel wanting to transfer ownership from the
freelancer to the station and the freelancer refused.  New York Times assistant managing editor took
his 77,000 followers with him when he took a buyout to leave the paper. The
solution is to draft agreements and policies that outline the ownership of the
social media account, confidentiality and trade secrets, and what should be
done with passwords.

Part

Social
media firings and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) section 7
violations.  Organization’s social media
policy must reflect a host of complex legal requirements.  Having an attorney constantly review and
update polices is necessary to stay incompliance. A listing of what private and
nonprofit employers cannot do according to the NLRB:

Require
employees to avoid harming the integrity of image and integrity of the company;

Require employees to make sure that their social media posts are completely
accurate and not misleading;

Require employees to think carefully about “friending” co-workers;

Require employees to report any unusual or inappropriate internal social media
activity;

Prohibit employees from releasing confidential guest, team member, or company
information;

Prohibit offensive, demeaning, abusive, or inappropriate remarks;

Prohibit
disparaging or defamatory comments;

Prohibit employees from sharing confidential information with another team
member unless they have a need to know the information to do their job;

Prohibit objectionable or inflammatory social media posts;

Prohibit employees from having conversations regarding confidential information
in the break room or in any other open area;

Prohibit employees from discussing confidential information at home or in
public areas;

Prohibit employees from commenting on legal matters;

Prohibit employees from revealing non-public company information on any public
site;

Prohibit employees from posting photos, music, and video, including those
containing the employer’s logos or trademarks;

Prohibit employees from posting to social media sites without receiving prior
authorization from the employer first;

Prohibit employees from sharing material non- public information or confidential
or proprietary information; and

Prohibit employees from “liking” a post on Facebook.

Social Media Policy Survey Finding