Here is a real story about how social media postings can end up badly for employers.
An ISIS terrorist, apparently proud of his position and keen to brag to his social media network, took a selfie and posted it to an online network favored by terrorists, along with a few comments. Unfortunately for him, he said and showed enough such that it was clear to U.S. Intelligence that he was standing in front of an ISIS headquarters, and they quickly matched this up with a building in Syria. U.S. and British intelligence know many of the favorite terrorist social media hang-outs and closely monitor the latest postings.
A very short while later, the U.S. Air Force Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Group in Florida who intially found the posting went to work – it seemed too easy and good to be true.
According to General “Hawk” Carlisle, “The guys that were working down out of Hurlburt [Florida], they’re combing through social media and they see some moron standing [in front of the ISIS HQ]… and bragging about the command and control capabilities” of the location where the ISIS terrorist was so proudly located.
Less than 24 hours later three Joint Direct Attack Munitions (aka bombs or missiles like you see on TV news) hit and totally destroyed the building.
Take away: employers may suffer damages resulting from seemingly innocent employee postings on social media networks.