Nearly nine out of ten (86%) of recruiters admit to using the internet to research potential employees.

According to careers website Experteer.co.uk, almost half of recruiters (49%) said they would consider online information when making a decision about inviting an applicant for interview. And 47% employ an external team to dig up information for top executive roles.

More than half (55%) of recruiters think applicants should be wary of the kind of personal information they post online.

The survey shows items uncovered through online research included good news coverage about the candidate (63%), bad news coverage about the candidate (51%), internet postings on company websites (47%), social networking contacts (43%) and unprofessional pictures (31%).