Reference Check Reveals Candidate Wasn't Actually a CEO, Just Really Confident

There's resume embellishment—you know, calling yourself a "team lead" when you were really just the person who organized the Slack channel—and then there's complete and utter fabrication.

This is a story about the latter.

The Resume That Was Too Good to Be True

Meet "Derek Johnson" (not his real name, but close enough). Derek applied for a VP of Product role at a Series C startup in Austin. His resume was impressive:

• "Founder & CEO, TechVision Solutions (2022-2024)"
• "Led company from $0 to $2M ARR in 18 months"
• "Managed team of 12 across product, engineering, and sales"
• "Secured $500K in seed funding from prominent VCs"
• "Successfully exited to strategic acquirer in 2024"

The hiring manager was intrigued. Derek interviewed well—confident, articulate, full of startup war stories. He talked about board meetings, fundraising strategy, and scaling challenges with the kind of detail that seemed authentic.

He made it to the final round. The company was ready to extend an offer.

Then came the reference check.

The Call That Changed Everything

The recruiter called the first reference listed: "Michael Chang, Former CTO of TechVision Solutions."

Here's how that call went, according to an anonymous post on Reddit that has since been verified by Business Insider:

Recruiter: "Hi Michael, I'm calling to verify Derek Johnson's employment and performance at TechVision Solutions, where he served as Founder and CEO from 2022 to 2024."

Long pause.

Michael: "I'm sorry, what? Derek was the CEO?"

Recruiter: "That's what his resume says. Can you confirm?"

Michael: "No. Absolutely not. Derek was an intern. An unpaid intern, actually. He worked with us for about three months in 2023 doing market research and data entry. I'm the founder and CEO of TechVision. I'm still the CEO. We never exited. We're still operating."

Recruiter: "..."

Michael: "Did he seriously put 'Founder & CEO' on his resume? That's incredible. I mean, it's fraud, but it's also kind of impressive."

The Unraveling

After recovering from the shock, the recruiter dug deeper.

TechVision Solutions:

• Founded in 2022 by Michael Chang (not Derek Johnson)
• Never reached $2M ARR (currently around $400K)
• Never secured $500K in seed funding (bootstrapped)
• Never exited (still operating as a small business)
• Team of 4 people, not 12

Derek Johnson's actual role:

• Unpaid intern from June 2023 to August 2023
• Responsibilities: market research, data entry, coffee runs
• Left after 3 months when offered a paid position elsewhere
• Never managed anyone, never attended board meetings, never spoke to investors

According to the recruiter's account shared on LinkedIn, Derek had fabricated literally every detail of his most prominent role.

How Did He Get This Far?

You're probably wondering: How did Derek make it through multiple interview rounds with a completely fabricated resume?

According to hiring experts interviewed by SHRM, several factors contributed:

1. Interview Confidence Derek clearly studied startup culture, read TechCrunch religiously, and could talk the talk. He dropped the right buzzwords, referenced common startup challenges, and sounded like someone who'd been through it.

"Confidence can get you surprisingly far in interviews," explains a senior recruiter in an HR Dive article. "Especially in tech, where 'fake it till you make it' is practically a cultural value."

2. Delayed Reference Checks Many companies (including this one) only run reference checks after the interview process is complete. By then, they're already emotionally invested in the candidate and less likely to scrutinize closely.

3. Reference List Control Derek provided his own reference list, which included "Michael Chang, Former CTO." Michael was never his CTO—Derek was Michael's intern—but the title implied a subordinate relationship where Michael reported to Derek.

4. General Lack of Verification Research from HireRight cited by Forbes found that 78% of resumes contain misleading information and 46% contain outright lies. Most companies do basic employment verification, but don't deeply fact-check role claims or accomplishments.

The Internet's Reaction

When this story hit Reddit's r/recruiting, it exploded.

@RecruiterLife: "This is why I call references BEFORE final rounds. I don't care if it slows things down. Better to catch fraud early than extend an offer to a con artist."

@StartupRecruiter: "The audacity to list the actual founder as your reference and claim YOU were the founder is next-level delusion."

@HRPro2025: "I had a candidate list me as a reference once. I never worked with them. They just found my name on LinkedIn and assumed I wouldn't get called. I did. They did not get the job."

@CandidateAdvocate: "Okay but how did this person think they'd get away with it? Eventually the truth comes out. Did they just assume no one would call references?"

The Background Check Industry Weighs In

This story went viral in background check circles because it highlights a massive gap in standard verification processes.

Sterling background checks, Checkr, and other providers typically verify:

• Dates of employment
• Job title (as reported by HR)
• Eligibility for rehire

What they don't typically verify:

• Actual responsibilities
• Performance or accomplishments
• Specific claims about revenue, team size, or business metrics

"Most background checks are 'trust but verify' for basic facts," explains an executive at a background check firm in an interview with HR Executive. "But they don't fact-check narrative claims like 'grew revenue from X to Y' unless the employer specifically requests deeper investigation."

The Legal Question

Is lying on your resume illegal?

According to employment lawyers interviewed by Bloomberg Law, it depends:

Not criminal (usually), but can lead to:

• Immediate termination if discovered after hiring
• Revocation of job offers
• Potential civil liability if the lie caused measurable damages
• Industry blacklisting (especially in smaller fields where everyone knows everyone)

Can be criminal if:

• Fake credentials are used (forged degrees, certifications)
• Fraud involves financial gain or damages exceeding certain thresholds
• False claims are made on government or security clearance applications

"Resume fraud itself isn't typically a crime," explains attorney Jennifer Wu in an interview with SHRM. "But it can absolutely destroy your career and reputation. In the age of LinkedIn and background checks, the truth always comes out."

The Candidate's Response

So what did Derek say when confronted?

According to the recruiter's account, Derek initially doubled down.

He claimed:

• Michael Chang was "misremembering" the arrangement
• He was a "co-founder" who left early and that's why Michael doesn't remember correctly
• The metrics on his resume reflected his "contributions" to the company's success, not his official title

When the recruiter pointed out that Michael explicitly said Derek was an unpaid intern for 3 months, Derek stopped responding.

His LinkedIn profile has since been deleted.

The Lessons

For candidates: Don't lie on your resume. Period.

You might get away with it in the short term, but the long-term consequences are catastrophic. And with LinkedIn, background checks, and reference verification, the odds of getting caught are higher than ever.

For recruiters: Do reference checks BEFORE final round interviews, not after.

And actually call the references. Don't just check boxes. Ask specific questions:

• "What was their actual role and responsibilities?"
• "How large was their team?"
• "Can you verify specific accomplishments listed on their resume?"

Also: Google candidates. Derek's LinkedIn profile claimed he was CEO, but TechVision's actual website listed Michael as founder and CEO. A 30-second Google search would have caught this.

The Epilogue

The company did not hire Derek, obviously.

They did, however, send a thank-you note to Michael Chang for his honesty and transparency. Michael responded with:

"No problem! Though I'm now worried about what else Derek has claimed. If anyone calls asking about his astronaut experience, please let me know."

Legend.

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Sources:

• Reddit
• Business Insider
• LinkedIn
• SHRM
• HR Dive
• Forbes - HireRight Research
• Reddit r/recruiting
• Sterling Background Checks
• Checkr
• HR Executive
• Bloomberg Law