When it comes to job interviews, is honesty the best policy? While majority will say a definite yes, some others might think the other way around. But seriously, with elevated background screening practices now followed by employers, why do people risk their reputation by lying about their past experiences during the job hunting process?

Well, the obvious need we see is definitely to secure a great job offer from reputed companies and pave inroads into the industry they aspire to work for. The need to lie also stems from the fact that employers only recruit candidates with exceptional skills and unique set of experiences working for specific industries. So to seek employer’s attention and get selected for interviews with companies, the job applicants are compelled with the need to lie and draft their resumes with industry-specific keywords to pass through ATS filtering, and make it to the top of recruiter’s list .

According to a CareerBuilder survey, the pressure to stand out among the crowd has made job seekers to embellish their skills and qualifications in a CV. The survey further reveals that as much as 58 percent employers said, they have caught lies on a resume. Meanwhile, Jobvite 2015 Jobseeker Nation findings reveal an astonishing insight that 31 percent Twitter respondents have inflated their skills, while 27 percent Facebook users fabricated job references on their social media accounts.

Given that resume is the first medium to create brilliant impression on the minds of employers to understand candidate’s skills, qualification and experiences to be called upon for rounds of interviews before landing the job. But what happens when resume represent inaccurate employment dates or discrepancies in job roles held? Recruiters are then left to prod and re-evaluate their decisions, since they immediately recognise that the applicant has been lying about their tenure for an employer or job roles held in their career. This also creates vacuum of distrust and makes recruiters to probe and delve deeper to discover the real truth.

On screening through piles of resumes, employers would like to design an interview as a section to test and find out what candidates can really do for the organisation. However, no matter how careful the interview is planned and carried out, there are ways to make little whoppers or exaggerations during the session.

Have you ever found yourself growing suspicion towards particular candidates, but unsure of how to figure out for yourself if they are speaking the truth? Below are some useful tips to decode the body language during interviews, which will indirectly or sometimes directly confirm the authenticity of the candidate’s statements:

See: 5 Ways to Assess Passionate Candidates During A Job Interview

If you find them smiling too often, trying to impress

You can feel if someone’s being honest from their smile and laugh. If you notice that the interviewee is smiling too often or faking a smile to create impression on minds of interviewers, then perhaps you need to pause a bit and get cautious – while decoding the silent behaviours and body language as the interviewee smiles.

They don’t stare at you all the time

Eyes speak more than words do, which could include someone telling the truth or faking it as a clear lie. You just see it and eyes do speak a language different from what the words utter – if you find dichotomy practiced between words and gestures, then perhaps you need to be watchful before selecting this applicant for further rounds of interview or handing over a job offer.

There is a popular misconception that liars generally tend to avoid eye contacts. However, the opposite is true: when someone is lying, they will maintain more deliberate eye contact that could mean staring at you or looking right in the eye for long. So if you find the interviewees holding onto eye contact for a bit longer than the normal, and not followed by glances away from you in between, then it clearly means they are lying and dishonest.

They don’t practice unnecessary gestures

While listening to their answers, pay attention to the interviewee’s hands. Have you caught them touching their nose, or covering their throat when they speak? Touching nose and covering particular body parts can be silent indicators of  some people speaking lies. Therefore, if your applicants do not show these signs, then they might be telling the truth.

They blink normally and not too often or fast

People who speak truth will maintain consistent rate and rhythm of blinking, when they are speaking. On the other hand, liars will blink their eyes from slow to faster speed, when they are fibbing. Hence, hiring managers should notice even the slightest detail of the candidates’ eye movement and blinking rate during the interview.

They have a steady voice and breathing

Someone who is telling lies might unconsciously breathe more heavily than the normal person. Lying can make some people feel nervous, and this contributes to increase in heart rate and blood flow, which makes it difficult for them to breathe and speak in a steady voice.

However, if you find the candidates appearing for an interview are speaking with unchanging unwavering tonalities during the Q&A session, then it is a clear affirmation of the truths and facts stated during the interview.

Article first appeared on Jobiness.

Read also: How to Exit the Interview on a Positive Note with the Hiring Manager?