Why You Should Include Political Advocate Checks
in Your Vetting Process
by Aimee Cartwright
The next UK general election is set to take place later this year. As you think about which candidates would fit in with your organisation, we encourage you to consider how their online behaviour could potentially affect your group’s safety and reputation.
Social Media Checks are often left out of the conversation when it comes to vetting political candidates. However, this can result in the recruitment of dangerous or unsuitable candidates who pose a significant threat to the political body they join.
Today, we are going to emphasise the importance of Political Advocate Checks for political organisations, as well as explaining how SP Index carries out these online background checks in a compliant manner.
What is a Political Advocate Check?
SP Index Political Advocate Checks are a type of Social Media Check designed to vet individuals working for political organisations. We vet candidates in the pre-employment stage, as well as existing members, campaign teams, and suppliers.
By analysing candidates’ online behaviour contextually and objectively, we can determine their level of advocate activity, which is vital information for your organisation.
Our commitment to the Data Protection Act 2018 (incorporating GDPR) and the Equality Act 2010 means that we only ever report on political views that fall under the category of advocacy work, taking care to respect protected characteristics.
We boast an end-to-end Protected Characteristic Defender who ensures this commitment is always upheld. For example, an individual’s preference for a particular political party would not be reported unless their content was linked to political advocacy.
What Do SP Index Political Advocate Checks Cover?
Our comprehensive Political Advocate Checks guarantee:
- Industry and organisation specific check
- Fast turnaround (2-5 working days)
- Unlimited years of online history available
- 200 social and professional networking sites and millions of web pages
- Editorials/media/press/journals
- Checks on mobile-only and off-mobile apps
- Identification and checks on aliases and pseudonyms
- Flags for undesirable blogging and vlogging
- General risk assessment
- Enhanced networks risk assessment
Why You Should Do Political Advocate Checks on Political Candidates
1: You could make your organisation safer
Social media scandals are a threat to any industry, but particularly politics, as these scandals can strongly influence public opinion.
There are examples of online misconduct across most political parties, but one example is the dismissal of Rebecca Long-Bailey, who shared an article on social media that contained an antisemitic conspiracy theory.
By vetting candidates as early as possible, such scandals could be avoided. SP Index Social Media Checks look for adverse patterns of behaviour in candidate’s profiles, and therefore we often spot concerning content before it has the opportunity to escalate.
Even when the content is not adverse, it can be harmful to your organisation. Our compliant Political Advocate Checks are designed to pick up on any advocate activity, and therefore you will find out whether a potential candidate may be sharing content that opposes your group’s ideology.
2. You could find the best candidates for the job
Our reports cover all advocate activity. This means they can be used to identify a candidate who may contribute positively to your political organisation, ultimately boosting morale, strengthening values, and improving your reputation.
For example, one candidate may be using their online platform to promote your group’s values, engage with supporters positively, and challenge the opposition respectfully. As this information is presented to you in the form of an external report, it’s an objective way to select a suitable candidate.
3: You could improve your reputation
Do not underestimate the power of being able to say that your organisation vets every one of its members. This could not only improve the perception of your organisation in the eyes of the public, but also contribute to a feeling of security within your group.
As our Social Media Checks are designed for all political parties and organisations, our political clients can proudly state that they perform online background checks that are objective.
Contact
To find out how we can help your organisation prepare for the next general election, get in touch on 0800 468 1688 or info@sp-index.com.
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