I did that interview. Borderline illegal. My life story I consider pretty personal and was so was a pretty uncomfortable interview.
The interview was conducted by the recruiter and while she didn’t flat out ask personal questions, she asked questions that would almost cause me to reveal personal information such as my marital status and sexuality. It was not fun coming with made up responses to avoid that because it’s none of her business.
There’s a reason interviews should stay professional. I’m surprised they haven’t been sued.
With that said, there are lots of reasons why a company might want to vet candidate attitude besides discriminating based on protected characteristics.
Out of curiosity, what kind of questions did you find invasive or discriminatory?
I get that it's totally an innocent intent, but there are much better ways to assess a candidate's soft skills, that is strictly related to their professional experience.
Many if not most people find us a desirable attribute in coworkers and workplaces. I get that it's not for everyone, but not every workplace is a good fit for everyone.
I think you're getting some rude comments because of exactly this fact
fwiw, when I interview candidates in a technical interview, I still attempt at some small talk to get a sense of "can I have a normal conversation with this person"
(appreciate the sensible responses btw!)