CATCHING CLAIMANTS IN THE ACT – INTERNET SURVEILLANCE THROUGH POPULAR SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES

With the rapid rise of social networking through internet sites such as Facebook and Myspace, more and more people are placing personal and private information on the web. At Hall Booth Smith & Slover, we perform internet inquiries of popular social networking sites and public records databases on every claimant upon receipt of a new file. In Workers’ Compensation cases, claimant’s oft en will post pictures of themselves, or make comments about their activities. When what the claimant posts on the internet is inconsistent with their allegations or testimony, that can provide employers and insurers with tremendous leverage to limit exposure or negotiate favorable settlements. Social networking sites are a critical repository of information that should not be overlooked when defending claims.

Unfortunately, attorney’s are somewhat handcuffed in their ability to access the information that may be available on a person’s site. Privacy settings oft en restrict access only to certain approved “friends” of the profile’s owner. If the claimant has hired an attorney, Rule 4.2(a) of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct prevents the Employer/Insurer’s counsel from communicating with the claimant. An attorney sending a “friend” request to the claimant to gain access to their page would very likely constitute an unauthorized communication.