Google brings back offline interviews for IT professionals due to AI fraud "behind the scenes"

In recent years, online interviews have become the norm in the IT industry and a fast way to hire, given the popularity of remote work. However, a problem has emerged that could set all these advances back a couple of steps.

The fact is that More and more candidates are using AI tools behind the scenes, that help them pass even the most difficult technical tests with ease, according to WSJ.

Companies are responding by returning to old hiring methods: Cisco and McKinsey have fully resumed online interviews, while Google is introducing face-to-face meetings for certain positions, including programmers, to make sure their coding skills are real.

This is only what companies have stated publicly, but if you look at the statistics, it seems that such “rollbacks” to offline are a common phenomenon. According to the Dallas-based recruiting company Coda Search/Staffing, the share of employers requesting face-to-face interviews increased to 30% in 2025 (last year, it was only 5%).

Another problem for businesses is fraudsters who use AI dipshots to impersonate candidates to steal data or money. According to Gartner, 6% of 3,000 job seekers surveyed said they had cheated at interviews. The company predicts that by 2028, one in four candidate profiles in the world will be fake.

The company now scrutinizes video interviews more closely for signs of fraud, such as whispering behind the scenes, pauses before answers, etc. Other employers are turning to biographical or biometric data verification tools to help them.