The surprising truth about who might own your personal social media account
A unique court case could have implications for anyone who works in social media. Here’s what you need to know.
A federal court in Pennsylvania last week dismissed a lawsuit brought by a former employee who had sued because upon her departure the company changed her LinkedIn password and took over her personal account.
Tech website Ars Technica offers this description of the case:
“Linda Eagle was the head of a company called Edcomm when it was acquired in 2010. But relations soured and Eagle was fired the following year. Eagle had shared her LinkedIn password with another Edcomm employee so that she could help Eagle manage the account. When Eagle was shown the door, her former assistant changed the password on her account, freezing Eagle out of it. Edcomm then replaced Eagle’s name and picture with the name and photograph of her successor.”
Eagle brought a lawsuit against the company, asserting that it had violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. According to Ars Technica:
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