A new report reveals significant gaps in talent screening and verification processes
Identity fraud and candidate discrepancies are plaguing recruitment processes worldwide, according to a new report, which warned of gaps in employers' talent screening and verification measures.
HireRight's 2025 Global Benchmark Report revealed that one in six organisations worldwide has experienced identity fraud during their hiring process.
Identity fraud refers to situations when an individual uses false or stolen personal information to secure a job, according to Keesing Technologies.
HireRight's report revealed that employers in the Asia-Pacific region recorded the highest rate of identity fraud with 20%, followed by Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (19%), and then North America (15%).
Risk of candidate discrepancies
Meanwhile, the report also found that almost two in five employers found at least one discrepancy per candidate screened.
Among them, 13% said they find at least one discrepancy per five candidates.
Employment verifications emerged as the most common discrepancy detected by employers in the EMEA (64%) and APAC (72%) regions during their background screenings.
In North America, undisclosed criminal convictions were the top discrepancies detected by employers with 41%, with employment verifications coming in second with 36%.
Gaps in talent screening
Euan Menzies, president and CEO of HireRight, said their findings indicate that identity fraud and candidate misrepresentation present "real risks" to employers worldwide.
"While many companies are taking steps to verify identities and screen thoroughly, there are still significant gaps," Menzies said in a statement.
According to the report, only three in five employers are conducting identity checks as part of their pre-employment screening programme.
Among those who conduct identity checks, the report found that some are using third-party background screening platforms, while others are asking trained staff to do it in-house.
"In EMEA and APAC, this is more likely to be annual or periodic, but in North America, one-off training was more common, possibly allowing new identity fraud techniques to go undetected," the report read.
"External training, such as informational webinars, is also used by around two in 10 North America respondents and one in 10 EMEA and APAC respondents."
Additionally, the report found that more than a third of employers in North America (38%), EMEA (37%), and bnAPAC (25%) do not conduct any post-hire screening or monitoring on employees.
Menzies warned employers that failing to properly screen talent can have "costly consequences" for them.
"Employers that fail to strengthen their identity verification processes or overlook recurring discrepancy patterns could face costly consequences, from compliance failures to reputational harm," he said.
