Anyone lying on their resume is in for a rude awakening.
LinkedIn is launching a new feature that will allow companies to remove any imposter employee accounts.
It will give verified companies the power to remove fake employees from appearing in the company’s search results or as an associated member.
While this tool will stop people from wrongly padding out their resume, it could also limit opportunities for scams.
If a fake recruiter approaches you on LinkedIn saying they work for so-and-so company—and their profile matches—then you’re likely to believe them.
The new feature is rolling out over the next few weeks to all verified companies worldwide.
Workplace verification could soon be required
Microsoft-owned LinkedIn is also piloting a tool that would make it harder for someone to keep inaccurate employment on their profile, even if the company page admins don’t notice them.
A select number of companies are currently testing a feature that would require workplace verification from anyone listing the organization as their current employer.
Workplace verification requires you to add your work email and enter the subsequent verification code sent to it.
While this tool might stop fake employees, could it limit freelancers—who often don’t have a company email address—from including their current experience?
“We recognize there are groups of people (e.g. freelancers, contractors, field workers or front of house workers in retail) who might not have access to a company email address,” a LinkedIn spokesperson told Fast Company in an emailed response to that question. “There are exceptions for people with those roles at companies.”
According to LinkedIn, workplace verification will not be required in instances where users select an exempt type of employment, such as self-employed or freelance.
