Remote work options and remote hiring have introduced employers to global talent pools, which makes detecting and preventing fraudulent candidates more important than ever. Fraudulent candidates and fake applications are on the rise – up 92% since the pandemic. Misrepresentation during the hiring process can cost employers up to 30% of a worker’s first-year salary.
What is candidate fraud?
Remote work and global hiring have expanded access to talent pools, but they’ve also created opportunities for fraud. It is estimated that 15–20% of candidates misrepresent themselves during the recruitment and interview process. Fake resumes, identity theft, and even AI-generated profiles are becoming more common.
Additional alarming statistics:
- 21% of candidates engage in cheating in a controlled testing environment.
- 52% of executives believe AI fraud detection capabilities are a best practice for hiring and preventing hiring fraud.
Hiring managers have learned the hard way that hiring a candidate based on false information can prove costly, so it’s crucial for stakeholders in the hiring process to watch for red flags on resumes and cover letters and during job interviews to prevent hiring fake candidates.
Hire with confidence – Contact Procom today to protect your organization against fraudulent candidates.
What are the main types of resume fraud employers should watch for?
Resume inflation comes in many forms, including but not limited to:
- Falsifying company experience: Changing company names to reflect certain industry experience or listing projects performed at a company, but not by the applicant.
- Inaccurate employment history: Stretching the timespan an employee was actually with an organization.
- Exaggerating skills or experience: Including skills the applicant does not possess or technology with which the applicant lacks experience.
- Inflating titles: Providing a more senior title than the applicant actually held or altering a title to reflect a component of the applicant’s role that may be appealing to potential employers.
- Educational discrepancies: Falsifying academic degrees or professional certifications or including degrees from unknown institutions.
- Fake identities: Using fabricated or stolen identities to misrepresent a candidate’s background. This can involve submitting fake profiles, relying on AI-generated information, or masking a candidate’s identity to appear more credible.
Fraud prevention starts with vigilance. Employers must develop processes to identify fake candidates and protect against the use of stolen identities in the recruitment process. Detecting fraudulent applicants isn’t easy, but it is possible, thanks partly to the very things that enable it: technology and human capability.
How can hiring managers detect and prevent fraudulent candidates?
There are several methods to identify potential resume fraud and verify whether the information is accurate.
Warning signs of resume inflation include:
- Conflicting resumes: The candidate has applied multiple times at an organization, but each of the applicant’s resumes contains differing information about job titles, employment dates, etc.
- Multiple ATS profiles: The candidate has multiple profiles in an Applicant Tracking System with different contact details or variations in the applicant’s name.
- LinkedIn conflicts: The candidate does not have a LinkedIn profile, or the information on the candidate’s profile does not align with their resume.
Approaches for verifying resume information include:
- Check resumes on file: If the applicant has multiple resumes on file, compare them for previous employers, employment dates and job titles.
- Cross-check external resources: You can check resumes against other external sources such as job boards and LinkedIn.
- Check references: For references that include employer email addresses (not their personal email addresses), review them on LinkedIn or through corporate websites.
- Perform informal checks within the industry: Individuals may not currently work with the candidate, but they may be in the same network and have knowledge of their skills and experiences.
- Review references provided on LinkedIn: Did the reference work at the same place at the same time as the candidate?
- Ask for an email from a work account: If the candidate states that they are currently employed, ask for an email from their work account.
- Confirm employment with HR: If there are lingering suspicions about a candidate’s experience, contact the organization’s human resources staff for verification.
- Ask deep questions: Ask the candidate focused questions about the depth of skills and experience they provided on their resume; gauge whether their answers align with the information presented.
- Review other workers from the same organization: Is there consistency in themes of projects, technologies and timeframes?
- Formal education: If proof of formal education is required, request copies of certifications, degrees and or transcripts.
Don’t assume that incorrect details are necessarily fraudulent. Everyone makes mistakes, and sometimes additional follow-up is needed.
Addressing Potential Resume Fraud
When discrepancies arise, confront them directly. Following are examples of how to handle resume areas where fraud and human error are common:
- Conflicting employment dates: Incorrect employment dates or gaps in work history may result from typos or a simple memory mistake; ask the applicant about dates that seem wrong or lapses in employment.
- Suspicious experience: Ask about specific employment or projects that seem dubious or conflict between the candidate’s resume and LinkedIn profile.
- Incomplete education or certifications: If you aren’t able to verify academic degrees or certifications, ask the candidate to qualify any disparities.
- Job titles: Ask for a verifiable job title from HR during employment verification; if the title conflicts with that provided by the applicant, ask the candidate why.
Minor errors that can be explained as honest mistakes – such as employment duration – can be addressed, corrected and moved past. But outright misrepresentation or pervasive embellishment should disqualify a candidate from moving forward.
What interview red flags indicate fraudulent candidates?
Video job interviews became standard during the pandemic, and, like remote and hybrid work, they’re here to stay.
But video interviews are another area ripe for fraudulent behavior by job seekers. With many jobs operated entirely remotely, some applicants have seized on the opportunity to misrepresent themselves in video interviews to gain desirable jobs for which they’re not qualified.
Validating candidates during video interviews: What to watch for
Candidates may use several deceitful fraud tactics in video interviews, including having another – and more qualified, individual stand in for them. Here are some cautionary signs to be aware of during virtual job interviews:
- No camera: The candidate’s camera may be off, or the candidate may claim they don’t have a video camera or that it’s broken; this could indicate the candidate is unprepared or is not who they claim to be.
- No audio: The candidate may appear on camera, but they are using another device to call into the interview.
- Lack of eye contact: If the candidate’s camera is on, but they aren’t holding eye contact or seem to be looking elsewhere after every question, they may not be confident about their qualifications, or they may be searching for answers from a prepared “cheat sheet” or using another device to look up details online.
- Typing during the interview: If interviewers see or hear the candidate typing in the midst of an interview, the candidate may be taking notes about the prospective job; the applicant may also be seeking answers for questions they can’t answer effectively.
- Awkward body language: Job interviews can be nerve-wracking, and it’s to be expected that candidates may seem nervous. Watch for excessive uneasiness or animated excitement that can signal that a candidate is not who they say they are.
- Awkward verbal language: As with body language, candidates may stumble or stammer in their speech during job interviews due to anxiety; however, candidates who overcompensate with their speech or use terms that don’t align with their purported experience or the job at hand may not be as advertised.
If the candidate can’t appear onscreen, ask to reschedule the interview when they can access a computer with a working camera. If you suspect the candidate is chatting with someone during the interview to gain information, ask them to share their screen. If you believe the person you’re talking to is not the person who applied, ask them to show you an ID for verification.
Onboarding
The onboarding process is also a critical step when engaging talent, and even those who seem to be qualified candidates must continue to be vetted until the very end of the acquisition process. Conducting a basic background check is useful, but they don’t necessarily confirm identity. When onboarding candidates:
- Address: Are you shipping any equipment to an address other than what was provided on resume or supporting documents?
- Start dates: Does the candidate keep shifting their start dates? In combination with other red flags, this could indicate fraudulent activity. It may mean that the individual who actually applied has other commitments.
- Validation: Is the candidate unable to validate identification or banking information? Can they not provide a photo I.D with their full name?
Organizations around the globe are witnessing an increase in fraudulent candidates, with associated impacts on risk and cybersecurity. To protect themselves from fraudulent candidates, hiring managers can leverage recruitment technology that facilitates candidate screening and interviews to guarantee skill and fit quickly, automated, and securely.
Frequently asked questions about detecting and preventing fraudulent candidates
How common are fraudulent candidates in North America?
Fraudulent applications are becoming more common in the market. Since 2020, several industries have reported sustained growth in fake resumes, identity theft, and falsified credentials. This pattern affects both productivity and security across North America, with highly-regulated sectors such as finance, healthcare, and technology facing the greatest risk.
Can AI alone detect fraudulent candidates?
AI can surface inconsistencies across resumes, LinkedIn profiles, and test results, but it is not sufficient on its own. Context matters, and understanding intent requires judgment that algorithms cannot provide. Some tactics, such as impersonation during interviews, can only be spotted by an experienced professional who knows what to look for. The most reliable approach is to use technology as a first filter and pair it with recruiters who bring expertise, curiosity, and the ability to probe further.
What industries are most at risk?
Sectors that handle sensitive data or manage critical systems are most exposed. Technology firms, financial institutions, and healthcare providers are attractive targets because fraudulent candidates see access to proprietary code, financial assets, or patient records as valuable.
How quickly should fraud checks happen?
Screening for fraud should start with the first touchpoint and continue throughout the hiring journey. Resume checks should be completed before interviews, identity should be verified during the selection stage, and details should be reconfirmed at onboarding. Building these checks into multiple stages of the process reduces the chance of oversights and creates a consistent experience that protects both the organization and genuine candidates.
Why partner with a staffing firm like Procom?
Procom combines advanced recruitment technology with years of experience identifying fraudulent candidates. Automated tools allow us to flag irregularities quickly, while our recruiters apply professional judgment to confirm authenticity. This integrated approach speeds up hiring, protects budgets, and keeps sensitive information secure.
Employers who work with Procom know that every candidate has been thoroughly vetted for both capability and integrity.
Partner With the People Who Power Performance
Candidate fraud and fake candidates pose significant risks to any hiring company, potentially leading to identity theft, data theft, and security breaches. Procom helps you avoid hiring fake candidates by implementing robust verification processes, from thorough background checks and robust identity verification to ongoing recruiter training. Contact Procom to find the right people, the first time.
