The 2026 Trust in Hiring Report

93% of Job Seekers Are Lying to You. Here’s
What They Admitted.

New research from 1,500 recent job applicants reveal how careerfishing,
AI deception, and broken verification are eroding trust on both sides
of the hiring process, and what HR leaders can do about it.
Download the Report
93%

have embellished or lied during the hiring process

25%

used an AI avatar of themselves in a virtual interview

88%

know misrepresentation creates business risk, and did it anyway

82%

want transparency in what’s being checked

About This Research

The 2026 Trust in Hiring Report is based on a proprietary survey of 1,500 U.S. adults, fielded February 2026 via Pollfish, with a +/-2.5% margin of error. Every respondent was a full-time employee who actively applied for at least one job in the past 18 months. The survey covered embellishment behaviors, motivations, consequences, bias-avoidance strategies, AI usage, social media management, and attitudes toward background screening.

Published by GCheck, the background screening platform built on the Compliance for Good (TM) framework.

The Hiring Trust Problem Is Bigger
Than Most Organizations Realize

Embellishment during the hiring process has long been treated as a minor, expected behavior. A polished resume here, an inflated title there. GCheck’s 2026 Trust in Hiring Report tells a different story.

We surveyed 1,500 Americans who recently applied for jobs and asked them directly about their behaviors, motivations, and attitudes toward screening. What they told us goes well beyond resume padding. The data documents a system-wide pattern of misrepresentation that spans every generation, demographic, and experience level.

The report introduces careerfishing: the systematic fabrication of professional identity across resumes, interviews, and references. It also documents, for the first time, the scale at which AI tools are being used not just to assist candidates but to impersonate them.

What’s in the Report
  • The 93% problem: Which 13 embellishment behaviors are most common, and which ones screening processes are least likely to catch
  • The verification feedback loop: Why 53% of candidates exaggerate specifically because they don’t expect employers to check, and what that means for process design
  • The reference crisis: Why 41% of candidates are sending fake references and 45% are coaching the real ones
  • The AI dimension: How 25% of candidates have used AI avatars in virtual interviews, and what that means for remote hiring integrity
  • The bias factor: Why 64% of Hispanic and 56% of Black job seekers alter their presentation, and what that reveals about fairness signals in screening
  • The motherhood penalty in action: Why half of working mothers hide their children during the hiring process
  • What candidates actually want: The six trust-building factors that 75-82% of job seekers say would make them more confident in screening, a data-driven blueprint for process improvement
  • Seven steps organizations can take now: Actionable recommendations grounded in the survey data

Key Findings

93%

of recent job seekers have embellished or lied during the hiring process. The rate holds across every generation: 97% of Baby Boomers, 96% of Gen Z, 93% of Millennials, and 91% of Gen X.

60%

of those who embellished said they would not have been hired if fully honest. Only 26% were ever caught — the gap between embellishment and detection is what the report calls the verification feedback loop.

41%

had a friend or family member pose as a professional reference. Another 45% coached a reference on what to say. Reference checks, as currently practiced, may be confirming a scripted narrative rather than uncovering truth.

25%

used an AI-generated avatar of themselves to conduct a virtual job meeting. An additional 27% used AI during live interviews to generate real-time answers.

64%

of Hispanic and 56% of Black job seekers altered their appearance or communication style for interviews to reduce bias risk. 50% of working mothers with children under 18 hid caregiving responsibilities entirely.

88%

agree that candidate misrepresentation puts businesses at risk. Yet 93% participated in it. The report frames this as a market failure, not a character failure — candidates are rational participants in a system that rewards deception.

82%

want a clear explanation of what is being checked. 81% want a human reviewing the results. Candidates don’t oppose screening. They oppose opacity.

Built for the People Who Make Hiring Decisions

CHROs and VP of People

who need to quantify the trust gap for their leadership team

Talent Acquisition Leaders

who want data on what candidates are actually doing during the hiring process

Compliance Officers

who need evidence to support screening process investments

Staffing Agency Owners

who place candidates across multiple clients and industries

HR Directors at healthcare, nonprofit, and education organizations

where screening accuracy has outsized consequences

The Trust Gap Is Real. The Data Is Free.

The 2026 Trust in Hiring Report provides the research, the context, and a practical framework for rethinking
how your organization verifies candidates and builds trust on both sides of the hiring process.
Download the Report

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