I received a call from a company regarding a job opportunity. The HR informed me that there would be five rounds of interviews, which initially felt overwhelming. However, as they explained the process, I realized the rounds weren’t as intense as I had feared: Qualification review HR round – which was the call already in progress An assessment – untimed, without screen sharing or camera monitoring A short 10–15 minute manager interview A final salary discussion round Surprisingly, they scheduled the manager round before I had even completed the assessment. It was odd that such a brief interaction, with hardly any technical questions, was considered sufficient for evaluation. I was told it was a fully remote position, with the company based in Bangalore. Without me even asking, the HR mentioned they would offer a generous salary. The interview seemed to go well, so I was hopeful — but the very next day, I received a rejection email. After doing some research, I found out that the company doesn’t actually have an office in Bangalore. This led me to believe that the job opening might have been fake, possibly just a tactic to project a stronger market presence.