What Questions Are Asked on a Pre-Employment Polygraph

Five standard topics

An employer usually picks 2–4 topics from this list. More cannot be covered in a single test, because accuracy drops.

• Theft at previous jobs: cash, goods, company property.
• Use of hard drugs in the last 12 months.
• Concealed criminal convictions or pending criminal proceedings.
• False information on the résumé: education, experience, reasons for leaving.
• Ties to competitors or an intention to pass information to them.

What a question actually sounds like

Not “are you honest”, but “In the last 5 years, have you taken money or goods from an employer without permission?”. Every question has a time period, a specific action and an unambiguous answer. Before the test the candidate reads an explanation: what counts as theft and what does not, for example, a pen from the desk does not count.

Then the same question appears on the screen as statements: “I did not take money from an employer without permission” and “I took money from an employer without permission”. The person answers “true” or “false”. Each statement is repeated several times in different wordings.

What is not asked

Religion, politics, sexual orientation, health, family plans. Such questions are unlawful and pointless for the test. If an employer insists on them, the candidate has the right to decline those specific topics rather than the test as a whole.

Can you decline

Yes. The test is strictly voluntary and requires written consent. But the employer has the right not to hire someone who declined without explanation, if screening is part of the hiring process for the position. So the honest advice to a candidate: if there is nothing to hide, the test only helps.

How long it takes and what the employer receives

An EyeDetect test takes 30–45 minutes, with no sensors on the body. The employer receives a report with a score from 1 to 99 on each topic the same day. The result is not evidence in court; it is a basis for a hiring decision.