Social networking sites are getting very popular. Along with that, employees, before hiring their personnel, are carefully looking through the profiles of the job applicants on social networking sites, such as Facebook and MySpace and actively looking for more information about their “offline” life in Google.

A report from CareerBuilder says that 22 percent of the 3,100 employers it surveyed now use services like MySpace and Facebook to research candidates. 34 percent of the managers that screen potential employees, said they had found information that led them to dismiss candidates from consideration. Listed reasons include:

• 41 percent of candidates disclosed incidents of drinking/drug use

• 40 percent posted provocative photos or information

• 29 percent had poor communication skills

• 28 percent badmouthed a previous company/employer

• 27 percent lied about qualifications

• 22 percent made offensive statements about gender, race, religion, race, etc.

• 22 percent used an unprofessional screen name

• 21 percent were linked to criminal behavior

• 19 percent shared confidential information from previous employers

If your MySpace, Facebook, blog, or LiveJournal contains information you don't think an employer should see, it should be kept in "Friends Only" mode. But, legalities aside, anyone with a social profile should ensure that it's either. Anything you say can and will be used against you.