Best AI Image Detector For Recruiters

Recruiters see more AI-generated headshots every year. Most are harmless: real candidates using AI headshot services for a polished photo. The real risk is fake candidates, people applying under invented or stolen identities, sometimes using AI-altered photos and deepfake video in interviews.

What's normal

An AI-polished headshot is no more deceptive than a professionally retouched one, as long as it looks like the person. Rejecting candidates for using one isn't sensible, and can be unfair.

Real red flags

• A profile created recently, with few connections and generic posts.
• A work history that can't be confirmed with past employers.
• Reluctance to appear on camera, or video that lags, blurs around the face or doesn't match speech.
• The person in the interview not matching the photo or ID.
• Requests to send equipment to a different address, or to be paid in unusual ways.

The FBI warned in 2022 about deepfakes and stolen identities used to apply for remote jobs, and US authorities have since warned about North Korean IT workers using fake identities to get hired remotely.

Identity checks that work

1. Verify identity documents through a trusted service, especially for remote roles.
2. Hold at least one live video interview, and ask candidates to turn their head or move a hand in front of their face; deepfakes often glitch.
3. Check references by calling numbers you find independently.
4. Confirm past employment directly with employers.

Where photo detectors fit

Detecting whether a headshot is AI-made doesn't tell you if the candidate is real. Profile photos on LinkedIn and job sites usually have their metadata stripped, so a metadata tool such as AI Image Detector (made by Patrick Bushe, who runs this site) will often find nothing. A reverse image search with Google Lens is more useful: it finds photos stolen from other people.

Be consistent and fair

Apply the same checks to every candidate at the same stage, and follow employment and privacy laws where you hire.

See AI profile pictures and LinkedIn images.