Identity fraud isn’t a theoretical risk in recruitment—it’s accelerating and evolving. TrustID reports a 72% year‑on‑year rise in fraudulent identity documents in 2025, with sharp growth in imposter fraud and digitally altered documents. But the wider picture shows the same trend across the ecosystem: Cifas recorded 217,000+ fraud risk cases in H1 2025 and highlighted AI‑enabled document forgery and identity abuse as mainstream threats, while Experian found nearly 60% of companies saw higher fraud losses and 72% of business leaders expect AI‑generated fraud/deepfakes to be a major challenge by 2026. [trustid.co.uk] [fraudscape.co.uk], [cifas.org.uk], [experian.com]

How the threat changed in 2025

• Globalised document fraud
  Fraudulent IDs were detected across 50+ issuing countries in TrustID’s dataset—diversification that undercuts familiarity‑based visual checks. [trustid.co.uk]
• UK & Irish passports remain high‑risk
  British and Irish passports were again the most frequently falsified, reflecting their high downstream value once accepted. [trustid.co.uk]
• Digital manipulation and deepfakes surged
  TrustID saw more digitally altered documents and imposter fraud; Entrust’s 2025 report similarly flags document forgeries and deepfakes as the fastest‑growing threats at onboarding. [trustid.co.uk], [entrust.com]
• Fraud extends beyond Right to Work (RTW)
  The pressure is visible in Director checks, student enrolment and KYC—not just RTW—per TrustID. At the same time, Cifas’ mid‑year Fraudscape highlights identity abuse spilling into the public sector, insurance, telco and gambling. [trustid.co.uk], [cifas.org.uk]
• Online fraud rising across industries
  Veriff’s 2025 report shows online fraud up ~21% YoY, with impersonation dominating and account takeover climbing—patterns employers feel during hiring and onboarding. [veriff.com], [landing-ha....veriff.me]

A talent leader’s reality: two fronts of risk

1. Fake candidates targeting employers
   Altered IDs, impostors at interviews, and malware‑laden CVs sent to HR inboxes. UK cyber authorities continue to warn that phishing and malicious attachments are core attack vectors for organisations; recent analyses document threat groups targeting HR with fake résumés to gain a foothold. [ncsc.gov.uk], [cybersecur...tynews.com]
2. Fraudsters posing as employers
   Fake job ads/recruiter impersonation extract payments and personal data from applicants, eroding brand trust; Experian’s 2025 research captures the broader impact, with 57% of consumers worried about online activities and heightened expectations for stronger safeguards. [experian.com]

Compliance backdrop UK employers can’t ignore

• Right to Work (2025 guidance): The Home Office updated its RTW guidance (12 Feb and 26 Jun 2025) to simplify digital checks, shift terminology to Digital Verification Service (DVS), and clarify evidence requirements (e.g., eVisas, expired BRPs not acceptable). [gov.uk], [assets.pub...ice.gov.uk], [gherson.com]
• Failure to Prevent Fraud (in force from 1 Sept 2025): Large organisations can face prosecution if associated persons commit fraud and reasonable prevention procedures aren’t in place; official guidance sets six principles—top‑level commitment, risk assessment, proportionate controls, due diligence, communication/training, and monitoring/review. [gov.uk], [assets.pub...ice.gov.uk], [cps.gov.uk]

What SMEs should do now (without slowing hiring)

1. Move beyond visual checks
   Adopt accredited digital verification (IDV/DVS) that detects digital edits and imposter attempts—echoed by TrustID and Entrust analyses of rising digital forgeries/deepfakes. [trustid.co.uk], [entrust.com]
2. Harden HR inboxes and CV handling

• Block risky attachment types; sandbox PDFs
• Enforce DMARC, SPF, DKIM and phishing mitigations from the NCSC playbook
  This reduces the threat pathway for “fake CV” into corporate systems. [ncsc.gov.uk]

1. Train your hiring teams
   Coach interviewers to spot imposter cues (video and in‑person), document red flags, and social engineering patterns common in recruitment fraud. Entrust, Experian, and Veriff all provide evidence of AI‑boosted impersonation. [entrust.com], [experian.com], [veriff.com]
2. Protect your employer brand

• Publish a “Verify job offers” page and report scams
• Set alerts for brand + “jobs” mentions
  This tackles fake‑vacancy scams that harm candidates (and your reputation). [experian.com]

1. Audit RTW and onboarding for legal resilience
   Map processes against Home Office RTW guidance and the Failure to Prevent Fraud principles; keep evidence trails for all checks. [gov.uk], [assets.pub...ice.gov.uk]
2. Measure continuously
   Experian’s data shows fraud losses rising and AI threats growing—treat prevention as an evolving program, not a one‑off project. [experian.com]

Bottom line: With document fraud up 72% (TrustID), and cross‑industry data showing AI‑accelerated identity abuse, 2026 demands faster, more digital, evidence‑based hiring controls. Coreus can help you redesign hiring workflows that are compliant, candidate‑friendly and fraud‑resilient. [trustid.co.uk]