The explosion of “Frankencandidates,” and genuinely qualified candidates losing out
As if finding a job wasn’t hard enough already, New Yorkers have to contend with the fact that their competitors in the job market now aren’t just, well, other New York job applicants, but AI-generated bots. Yes, a leading background screening expert is sounding the alarm over a growing trend in the 2025 hiring landscape: job applications that are increasingly coming not from real, actual, human people, but from bots.
Matthew J. Rodgers, President of iprospectcheck, a background-screening provider, says that a sharp rise in what he describes as ‘synthetic candidates’ – including AI-written resumes, deepfake interviews, and mass-submission tools – is making it harder than ever for New York employers to identify legitimate applicants.
“We’re seeing an explosion of what I’d call ‘Frankencandidates’ – profiles that look polished on paper but fall apart under scrutiny,” said Rodgers. “Some are built entirely by AI, others are the result of desperate job seekers using automation tools just to stay in the race. Either way, it’s creating real challenges for hiring teams.”
Rodgers warns that, aside from being a total waste of employers’ time – having to sift through scores of resumes and applications to try and detect if they’re from real people or not – genuinely qualified candidates risk losing out as they’re not being flagged as such. He advises New York employers to adapt their hiring processes to keep up with this increasingly common situation.
His top recommendations include:
- Check the candidate’s identity earlier in the process: Don’t wait until the final hiring stage to verify and confirm this. There are plenty of proactive measures that can be taken from the moment you think you have a promising applicant, such as cross-referencing official documents, which can save hours down the line and avoid costly mistakes.
- Look out for red flags in resumes and interviews: Things to look out for include resumes that are overly generic, and don’t stand out with anything original, or which list improbably career timelines, such as hopping from the mail room to CEO within two years, or which feature achievements with no measurable context. Deep fake tech can also be used in interviews, as it’s now evolved to simulate real-time expressions and lip-syncing, so watch out for time-lagged or overly-scripted-sounding responses.
- Try not to rely solely on automation: Yes, AI can be a help as well as a hindrance, accelerating the recruitment process by speed-reading hundreds of resumes in a short time and picking out the ones that sound feasible, but if you rely on it too much, it can create blind spots. There comes a point when you need to balance this with human judgment, especially for roles involving trust, money, or sensitive data.
- Use layered background checks: Essentially, use as many checks as you possibly can. Check employment history, verify the candidate’s education, authenticate their identity, and even do social media scans if it’s appropriate.
- Train hiring teams to recognize synthetic applicants: Because this is so new, most recruiters haven’t been trained in how to detect AI-generated materials or deepfake behavior. Offer internal workshops or create checklists so they know what kind of things to look out for, which can dramatically reduce risk and boost hiring accuracy.
“This isn’t about being anti-technology,” Rodgers added. “It’s about protecting the integrity of the hiring process. Automation can make anyone look perfect on paper – but only due diligence will tell you who’s actually fit for the job.”
As the lines between human and machine blur in recruitment, iprospectcheck is urging local businesses to stay vigilant and update their hiring protocols accordingly.
“Recruiters are under immense pressure to fill roles quickly,” Rodgers said. “But skipping the basics – like identity checks or verifying previous employment – leaves companies wide open to risk. In 2025, trusting your gut isn’t enough. You need evidence.”
With AI-powered hiring scams becoming more sophisticated by the month, Rodgers believes the New York firms that will thrive are those that combine smart tech with smart safeguards.
“Technology is not the enemy,” he concluded. “But it does mean the burden of proof is higher. In a world full of bots, hiring a real human is something you can no longer take for granted.”
