Human Resources executives have expressed wariness when it comes to leveraging social media for screening job applicants. From their perspective, these are murky waters they’d prefer to avoid.

But what if information posted to social media revealed information that could impact the safety of co-workers or the public? Could information posted to social media provide an early warning sign that employees or customers are at risk?

For example, a school bus driver in North Carolina was fired from her position after posting threats against an area middle school as well as individual staffers at the school on social media.

To keep these kinds of posts on your radar, companies can now use “alert” focused tools, such as First Advantage’s Social Media Watch to send configurable alerts regarding potential safety concerns posted on social media.

Social Media Watch leverages Fama, an FCRA-compliant service provider which uses unique software applications, to monitor all publicly available information on the web, including news, online forums and social media. According to their site, “Fama brings compliant, AI-based employment screening to help you create a productive, welcoming workplace and get you the information you need.”

In today’s world where people put their entire lives online, putting a system in place to alert you to concerns —either pre-hire or as an ongoing risk management—is a necessary step in limiting the risk to your brand.