Illinois on Aug. 1, 2012, became the second state behind Maryland to bar employers from asking job applicants and employees for passwords to their social media accounts.
State legislatures have begun taking action on the social media front after reports surfaced that many employers, as part of vetting job applicants, were asking for passwords to the Facebook, Twitter and other social media accounts.
Similar legislation is now pending in Congress and in statehouses in California, New York and Washington.
The new Illinois law amends the state's existing Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act.