Bengaluru – Indian employers are the most likely to have discovered identity fraud among their candidates and employees, leading to an increased emphasis on trust in the workforce, according to a recent YouGov survey. The research, commissioned by HireRight, a leading provider of global background screening services and workforce solutions, asked more than 1,000 senior HR and recruitment decisionmakers across multiple global markets about their company’s top recruitment challenges, workforce screening, and the impact of AI on their hiring activity. Its findings highlight shifting recruitment priorities in India, placing a greater focus on workforce trust for Indian organisations—as well as identifying India as having the highest rates of AI adoption by human resources teams and acceptance of candidate AI use in the hiring process across the markets surveyed.
India’s recruitment priorities are evolving
While employers spent much of 2025 navigating operational challenges, including rising recruitment costs, longer hiring timelines, and difficulty sourcing local talent, attention is now shifting towards securing the specialised skills needed for an increasingly technology-enabled economy. More than half (52%) expect AI to result in additional hiring as organisations seek employees with new skills, placing growing pressure on Indian employers to refine their hiring and screening processes to better assess whether their candidates have the skills and experience needed.
Against this backdrop, finding qualified talent (33%), attracting candidates willing to work full-time or in a hybrid model (31%), and integrating new technologies such as AI into recruitment processes (30%) are among the leading talent acquisition challenges Indian employers expect to face this year.
“As employer requirements evolve, recruitment is likely to have a growing focus on identifying capability, verifying candidate information, and making confident decisions at pace,” said Disha Joshi, Senior Director of International GTM at HireRight. “For Indian employers competing for in-demand talent, the ability to combine technology with trusted workforce data will become more important in building the workforce they need for growth.”
Trust becomes a defining priority in the evolving hiring landscape
With AI-powered fraud, identity misrepresentation, and fake candidate profiles becoming more sophisticated, many Indian employers are looking for ways to mitigate these emerging threats. HireRight’s research found that nearly three-quarters (74%) of HR and recruitment decisionmakers said they uncovered identity fraud among candidates or employees during 2025, the highest rate reported across the markets surveyed, demonstrating the worrying scale of this problem.
As organisations adopt new technologies and compete for specialised talent, verifying each candidate’s identity, qualifications, and employment history becomes an increasingly important part of workforce governance. This is reflected in how Indian organisations view employment screening:
• Brand reputation (39%), strengthening workplace safety (36%), and identifying behaviours that conflict with corporate values (36%) are among the key risks screening aims to help mitigate.
• Almost half (49%) identified accuracy and quality of results as one of the most important considerations when selecting a screening provider, followed by candidate experience (36%) and speed (32%).
• More than nine in ten (93%) said contingent workers are screened before beginning work, demonstrating that workforce governance typically extends beyond permanent employees to the wider workforce ecosystem.
“As hiring becomes faster and more automated, confidence in the people and information behind every hiring decision becomes increasingly important,” Disha continued. “For HR leaders, this means ensuring hiring strategies can keep pace with technological and workforce change, while maintaining robust standards for candidate verification, workforce integrity, and compliance. As Indian businesses continue to expand across borders and navigate increasingly complex employment regulations, balancing local market expertise with globally consistent hiring standards will be essential to building resilient workforces.”
