White lies, embellishments, and finessing the truth on a resume are certainly nothing new. But given the way the job market and hiring process have reached a heretofore unseen level of insanity, we seem to be in something of a golden age of lying our way into a job — or trying to, anyway.
A new survey shows not only how pervasive fibbing on resumes has become, but also who’s doing it the most, and which things they’re lying about in a bid to get ahead. Unsurprisingly, the short answer is: just about everything.
What’s behind all this dishonesty? Well, if you’ve tried to look for a job recently, you already know the answer. It has become next to impossible to get your resume to break through recruiting software’s gate-keeping, especially now that AI functions have become integrated into many applicant tracking systems, or ATSs.
Which is a long-winded way of saying: Many have found that lying actually works, and it’s often the difference between getting a response and getting ignored.
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Resume, job search, and career advice platform Career.io recently dug into this phenomenon by surveying 1,000 full-time workers to see who’s lying about what. Their findings were in line with other stats on the matter, like a March 2025 surveywhich found that a whopping 64.2% of workers had fibbed on their resumes.
Career.io found that men lie more often than women, at 33.2% compared to 21.1%, and the lies ranged from exaggerating their responsibilities at a role (23%) to boldly making up past jobs entirely (22%).
But it seems that the real determining factor when it comes to resume subterfuge comes down to age, not gender. Career.io found that the older the professional, the less they lied. Just 9% of boomers reported lying on their resume compared to 20.4% of Gen Xers and 38.5% of millennials. But Gen Z blew them all out of the water.
Career.io found that a whopping 47% of Gen Z workers, nearly half, are lying about their qualifications. That will certainly come as no surprise to those whose view of the age group is overwhelmingly negative.
But it’s far more telling about the very real headwinds the generation faces in the job market and the way those headwinds are exacerbated by negative stereotypes about them as unprofessional and difficult to manage. One study found companies were mass firing their Gen Z employees, resulting in an unemployment rate among the age group much higher than others.
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Employers have also reported that Gen Z workers are all too often unprepared for interviews and lack basic social skills pertaining to the workplace, like small talk. These have combined with the stereotypes to create a situation where Gen Z workers feel more stress about job searching than other age groups.
And given that so many entry-level jobs these days also require five years of experience—a deeply stupid phenomenon which makes no sense—it’s not really surprising they feel lying their way in the door is their only choice.
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Career.io’s survey found that when it comes to what Gen Z workers are actually lying about, the answer is, basically, everything. Nearly a quarter said they lied about their actual work experience, including adding fake positions they’ve never held. Which may sound diabolical, but this is what happens when so many employers require years of experience for entry-level jobs.
The responsibilities at their job were another hotbed of fibbing, with 29% admitting to it, along with 17.6% who said they’ve lied about their job titles. Nearly a quarter said they’ve lied about their skills, whether it was technical, professional, or “soft” skills needed for a job. Even educational credentials made the list, at 11.4%.
Ubiquitous though they may be, Career.io’s Amanda Augustine, a Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC), cautions young workers against this. “If you’re worried that your experience isn’t a perfect fit for a position, focus on reframing your information rather than falsifying it,” she recommended.
That said, studies have shown that even recruiters understand lying is just part of the game. One survey found that only 34.4% said they wouldn’t hire someone they caught in a resume lie. Many recruiters actually recommend massaging the truth, so long as the worker steers clear of anything that is easily verifiable or would come up on a background check.
Regardless, the bottom line is that there wouldn’t be a need for all this dishonesty if the job search process weren’t so farcically impossible, from AI tools that reject resumes unless they’re perfect “unicorn” fits to the rise of “ghost jobs” posted solely to make a company look like it’s growing. Workers didn’t create this absurd, dehumanizing system; employers and recruiters did. And they’re the only ones who can change it.
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John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.
