Job applicants are getting creative in trying to circumvent tAI systems that support the first screening process for many companies, but “hacking” your resume may just have the opposite effect.
In recent years, companies have made job seekers do more to prove they’re a fit for the organization, including endless rounds of interviews, in-depth work tests, and increasingly, AI screenings. An October survey from Resume Builder found half of the companies surveyed were already using AI in the hiring process, and 70% planned to incorporate it by the end of 2025.
In an effort to fight back, some applicants are resurrecting a loophole meant to trick AI screening systems and increase the odds of your résumé making it into the hands of a human. The supposed “white font” hack involves stuffing your resume with related keywords from a job posting in a tiny font and white letters so that the screening software finds you to be an appealing candidate, even if human hiring managers can’t see the text themselves.
While the trick has been around for years, it has resurfaced as applicants look for any way to help beat the AI-driven systems that have emerged to weed out applications.
The white-font hack may work for some applicant tracking systems looking for keywords, yet, it isn’t as foolproof as job seekers might think, Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, the chief innovation officer at staffing firm ManpowerGroup, told the Washington Post.
“Does it work? Yeah,” Chamorro-Premuzic told the outlet. “But it might contribute 10% or 15% of the variability between a résumé that is ultimately accepted versus one that is rejected.”
HR professionals on TikTok have also pointed out that companies have gotten savvy to the trick, and employing it (pun intended) could land you on a company blacklist.
@farahsharghi#greenscreen @Dan.from.HR The white font hack doesnt work #resume#jobtips#careeradvice#jobsearch#remotejobs#jobseeker#ats♬ Rich Minion – Yeat
@maddie_macho Replying to @Najja #greenscreen what a good resume looks like in the ATS and why the white font hack is crazy, in a bad way lol #resumeoptimization#recruitertips#atsfriendlyresume#keywordoptimization#seo#resumehack♬ original sound – Maddie Macho
Still, with the U.S. Unemployment rate at 4.1%, up from 3.8% in October last year, many people are desperate to snag a position by any means necessary. You’ll find this sentiment all over social media, particularly on forums like the subreddit “jobsearchhacks,” where users frequently vent about applying to dozens of companies over months with little success.
One user by the name of Hopeful_alchemist on Reddit wrote in a post that they had applied to 52 jobs and gotten to the interview stage 10 times, but still did not have a job after six months.
A survey from consulting firm PwC also claims entry-level jobs are especially harder to come by. The survey said in 2023, only 61% of HR leaders were looking for entry-level candidates, compared to 79% a year prior.