At what stage in the recruitment process can an employer check a potential employee’s social media profiles?

There is no legislation in Ireland specifically regulating background checks on prospective employees (save for in respect of certain employments, e.g. Garda Vetting for employments concerning children). It is becoming more common for employers to screen the social media sites and internet profiles of prospective employees during the recruitment process. While employers can access any such publicly available information without the consent of an employee, the Data Protection Commissioner has provided guidance that any publicly available information obtained regarding a prospective employee should be provided to the employee to allow them make comments on the information before a decision on