What a ghost job is, and how to spot one
A ghost job is a posting that is not attached to a real, active hire: an evergreen req kept up to collect résumés, a role already filled but never taken down, or a listing that never had a budget. Up to 40% of postings may never be filled. These are the signals the checker weighs, with its reasoning shown.
Time live
A role that has been reposted repeatedly or left open for months with no sign of closing is more likely collecting applicants than hiring one.
Vague specifics
No team, no manager, no concrete scope, just boilerplate that could belong to any company. Real openings tend to describe real work.
Source
A posting on the company’s own verified career page (Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby, SmartRecruiters) carries more signal than the same listing re-posted across aggregators.
Compensation
Missing pay, or an impossibly wide range, can signal a posting that is not tied to a specific, budgeted role.
Pipeline language
Phrases like "always hiring" or "future opportunities" often mean talent-pipelining rather than an open seat to fill now.
Scam markers
Off-platform contact, or requests for money or personal details, are surfaced separately and first. A scam is fraud, which is a different and more urgent problem than a ghost.
