I recently saw a story in the news about an EMT in Connecticut who was allegedly fired from herjob for posting derogatory remarks about a supervisor on asocial media site. While it's not the first time the mediahas covered an employee terminated under these circumstances, thisstory got me thinking: in today's online world, what type of riskmanagement, both personally and professionally, do we need topractice when using social media?

From marketing your business to fostering relationships andkeeping in touch with friends, we can all attest to the benefits ofsocial networking. However, as with many things in life,there is often a downside. Whether it's uploading an inappropriatephoto, sharing a negative comment about a coworker, or unknowinglyleaking sensitive company information, what you post online ispermanent. As social media continues to growits personal and professional base, it becomes increasinglyimportant to keep in mind a few considerations:

• Think now, post later: It's easy to do theopposite and post now, think later, especially when emotions areinvolved. While it may feel refreshing to vent about a difficultday at work, it only takes a few seconds for the wrong person toview a comment you've posted and make a copy or screenshot. Andthere is no guarantee it won't come back to haunt you or impactyour career down the road.
• Determine the right privacy settings: Do youwant to share your content with just your friends, your networks,or the entire world? Establish settings that are appropriatefor you and how you plan to utilize the social media site. Inaddition to monitoring your own configuration, remember to beconscious of the notes you post on your friend's pages and whatphotos you're tagged in. While you may have a high level of privacyon your personal site, your friends may have somethingdifferent.
• Know your friends: How well do youreally know your friends on social media sites? Can youtrust them not to share what you post with others? While it mightseem like a great idea to network with co-workers and managersonline, it may not make for the best working relationship in theoffice, especially if you work with those who are the gossipingtype.

Social media has quickly become an integral part of oursociety. As more users network online, it is likely we'll seean increase in the number of employees facing disciplinary measuresfor their online commentary, as well as the emergence of strongviewpoints on the subject. On the one hand, is what an employeedoes on his/her own time his/her business, and therefore is theprosecution of an employee's opinion a violation of free speech? Onthe other hand, can disparaging comments an employee makes abouthis/her company or coworker depict the business in a negative lightand damage its reputation?

What do you think? Is it fair for an employee to be heldaccountable in the workplace for the content that he or she postson a social networking site?