Worried About Fake Experience on Your Resume? How to Handle Background Checks When Switching Jobs

Hello all. I am from India. I have been working in an IT company for the past 2 years. When I joined my current company, I falsely claimed 2.10 years of experience. Now, with 2 years of genuine experience, I wish to eliminate the fabricated 2.10 years from my record. Initially, my designation in the current organization was 'Senior Engineer.' If I rectify the fake experience, could it pose an issue during a background check if I decide to transition to a new company?

Your question is not clear. Let us assume that you have been working with a company for the past 2 years. When you joined this company, you submitted a fake experience certificate indicating that you had worked for 2 years and 10 months at another organization. Now, you want that false information to be removed from your CV. Is that correct?

Fake Experience and Its Implications

Fake experience is just that—fake. It is advisable to only present your current genuine experience when starting a new role. During background verification, the new company typically contacts your immediate previous employer to verify details such as your salary and abilities during your time there. The focus is on their records. It is unlikely that they would go beyond this and identify discrepancies in your previous work history. As long as you have not disclosed the fake experience in your CV, it is improbable that they would discover it.

Let me know if you need further assistance.

Hello Madhu,

Thank you for your reply. Yes, you're correct. I joined my current organization by showing 2.10 years of fake experience and have completed 2 years here. I am concerned that if I switch companies and the new company contacts my current employer about my false previous employment... Also, when I joined my current organization, my designation was Senior Engineer, and it remains the same. If I remove the fake experience, and the next company asks how I joined my current organization as a Senior Engineer with no prior experience... that is the only thing I am worried about.

Hi, you need to apply some logic. If you remove 2.10 years of fake experience, it will be considered that you joined your current company as a fresher. For a fresher, how could a company assign a Senior Engineer designation equivalent to that of an experienced employee and provide a higher starting salary? A new employer could easily identify this discrepancy based on your starting salary and designation, especially with no genuine work experience. Take a moment to consider this carefully. Never fabricate your experience as it can lead to trouble at any point in time.

Hello Lakshmi Narayan. Thanks for replying. I understand that the Senior Engineer designation with no prior experience can be questioned. However, my salary is not that great. It was 5.5 LPA when I joined with 2.10 years of experience. Now it's 6 LPA after the last appraisal.

I didn't notice that your designation at the time of joining the current establishment was Senior Engineer. As advised by Lakshmi Narayan, you cannot join as a Senior Engineer without having experience in hand.

Questioning the Existence of Previous Employment

Now my question is, does the company where you claimed to have worked for 2.10 years really exist? Is it a fake organization? Or how did you manage the background verification then? It may happen that, by luck, the employer did not send it for verification. Or did you have any stronghold in that fake certificate company to give a good endorsement for you? If yes, continue that.

The Problem with Fake Certificates

We should not encourage fake certificates, and in order to cover up a wrong thing, we are repeatedly doing the wrong thing, and it is endless. But at a certain point, the background verification beyond a certain period will become impractical. Normally, background verification may be taken from three employers and not more than that.

It is up to you to decide and take a call.

Thanks, Laxmi Narayanan, for the advice.

Hello Madhu, the experience of 2.10 years I have shown is at an existing small-scale IT company. I obtained the documents from a training institute. They provided salary slips, a joining letter, an increment letter, experience and relieving documents, and the contact details of the reporting manager.

Even though all the details are there, it is fake. So, I am considering removing it from my profile.

The advice given by Lakshmi Narayan regarding freelancing work seems logical. What do you think?

Thank you, Madhu. Hello Laxmi Narayanan, if I tell my next employer that I worked as a freelancer, is there a chance that they'll ask for any relevant document or proof for the same? If yes, how can I handle this?

Hello Lakshmi Narayan, If I present that I worked as a freelancer, will the next employer assume that I joined my current organization with that freelancing experience? However, my current organization does not consider freelancing as experience. Is there a chance that the next employer will investigate or ask about my freelancing experience at my current organization to verify if the freelancing experience is real or not?

Hi, Normally, background verification (BGV) with a past employer will be limited to your tenure with that company only. How can a previous employer certify or comment on an employee's past experience details? However, a new employer might conduct a BGV with the contact person provided by you who offered you freelancing work.

Hi Lakshmi Narayan, do I need to include my freelancing experience on my resume during the interview? Or should I stick to showcasing my 2 years of real experience on the resume and only mention freelancing if asked about the career gap before my current job?

Hi Lakshmi Narayan,

Some people are saying that MNCs don't consider informal work experience as valid experience. In that case, can I inform them that I have over 4 years of overall experience, but only 2 years of relevant full-time work experience in my current company? Prior to that, I have freelancing experience that was not full-time and is not relevant. Should I apply to jobs that require only 2 years of experience?

Thank you.

Hi, experience is experience, whether formal or informal. What counts is your ability to perform the work effectively in reality. So, whether you show 2 or 4 years of experience, ultimately, how efficiently you do the work will be evaluated. If you are lacking in experience, you should be prepared to be flexible and potentially accept a slightly lower salary as well.

Thanks, Lakshmi Narayan, Currently, I am not concerned about salary. The only thing is, I want to remove the fake experience I presented to my current organization in the past and replace it with informal freelancing experience. However, many companies do not consider informal freelancing as valid experience due to the lack of formal documentation.

I am considering including it on my resume but not labeling it as relevant work experience. Do you think there is a risk of failing background verification because of this informal freelancing experience? What are your thoughts?

Hi, You claim that you are going to project it as non-relevant experience. Then why worry about BGV? In the absence of proper proof, how will the employer check?

Hello Prasad, do you have a PF from that fake company? If you do, then it is impossible for you to remove it from your CV.

I would advise not to join a top organization like TCS or Accenture if you have fake experience anywhere in your work history. Now, coming back to your question, don't remove the fake experience. Continue with that. Tell them to support your new BGV.

Mostly, BGV happens via email or phone to HR. Nothing else. That you can manage.

But remember, try not to join an MNC in your life. Target only mid-level or startups as a senior engineer. That would be better for you.

Target companies that have branches in only one city. Usually, those are small companies. They only verify your last company.