Five telltale signs a job candidate isn’t telling you the whole truth.

Everyone is under a lot of pressure to gain an edge in the current economy. For job candidates, this means more temptation to embellish resumes and past experiences.

If you are a candidate, don’t do it. Even little embellishments almost always backfire. Besides, most employers respect candidates who are straightforward about their past experiences. If you can show an employer how you handled a disappointment or made up for a lack of qualifications, you may be even more attractive to the employer than someone who has never proven their ability to overcome setbacks.

If you’re an employer, here are five red flags to watch for when reviewing resumes and interviewing candidates:

1. Nervous body language

Beware of shifty eyes – seriously. If a candidate avoids eye contact when you ask a pressing question, it could mean you’re not getting the whole story. On the other hand, too much direct eye contact can also be a bad sign.

What else should you watch out for?

• Nervous breathing
• Change in tone of voice
• Change in rate of speech
• Sweating   
• A forced smile
• Fidgeting
• Hand moving to cover part of face

Keep an eye out for these signs, but also remember to allow for some natural nervousness on the part of any interviewee.

2. Inconsistencies in the story

If the details of an applicant’s story don’t match up from one interview to the next, your candidate might be more than forgetful. The resume, interviews, and references should all tell the same story. If not, you should be hearing warning bells. Also, during interviews, watch out for pauses in speaking. It normally takes someone a second or two to think up a fabricated response to a question. An increase in “ums” and “uhs” can also be a sign that a candidate isn’t being straightforward with you.

3. Overemphasizing the truth

If a candidate goes out of their way to tell you they’re telling the truth, they may well be doing the opposite. Phrases like, “To be honest with you…”, “The fact is…”, “The truth of the matter is…”, can be lead-ins to false statements. Candidates who are telling the truth know it’s the truth and normally have no reason to believe you’d think otherwise.

4. Missing months or years in the resume

Candidates will sometimes omit the dates on their resume in an effort to hide embarrassing gaps, chronic job hopping, or other things they don’t want to you know about. Without dates, it’s harder to piece together someone’s background. If a candidate isn’t willing to fill in the dates for you, you can safely toss his or her application. You won’t be missing anything.

5. False education credentials

One thing that some job candidates frequently falsify is their education. It’s also one of the easiest accomplishments for a recruiter to check up on. You can easily verify a degree or qualification simply by calling the school. What if you’ve never heard of the school? Watch out. It could be a diploma mill. If you’re not sure about the validity of the institution, you should get a well-known, reliable third party to verify it for you.