Job seekers' resumes are being posted on Internet sites, possibly violating privacy laws, an official said yesterday. It was also revealed that more than six in 10 Web sites appeared to be gathering private information about users - with only about 30 per cent telling the individuals why, said Privacy Commissioner Stephen Lau Ka-men. 'That's higher than I expected,' said Mr Lau. Companies which ran Web sites that gathered information such as a user's telephone number, address or identity card number, without saying why they wanted the data, were breaking the law, he said. Mr Lau's office is to send all 531 Web sites surveyed a general notice and will contact them in three months to see if they are complying. The survey found 20 employment Web sites, of which an undisclosed number were posting resumes online for any user to look at, said Mr Lau. However, a search of a dozen sites by the South China Morning Post only turned up one which let any visitor freely look at candidates' personal information, including e-mail, telephone number and job experience.
