How to Check If an Offer Letter Is Fake (India)

Last updated: 8 October 2026 · By the Asuraa Team

Quick answer: To check if an offer letter is fake, verify it through the company's own channels: match the sender's email domain, find the role on the official careers page, and use the company's offer verification tool where one exists. Refuse any request for money. TCS, Infosys and Wipro all state on their official fraud pages that they never charge candidates, so a fee demand means the letter is fake.

Key takeaways

• The clearest sign of a fake offer letter is any request for a fee, security deposit or refundable amount before joining.
• TCS says its IT offer letters can be checked with an official offer verification tool, and Infosys provides an offer validation page for India at career.infosys.com/offerValidation.
• TCS and Infosys state that their hiring emails come only from @tcs.com and @infosys.com addresses, and TCS says it does not recruit through messaging apps.
• Infosys and Wipro say genuine hiring includes at least one virtual or in-person interview and does not require bank account, card or tax details.
• If you paid money after a fake offer, call 1930 and file a Financial Fraud complaint on cybercrime.gov.in; if not, report the message on Sanchar Saathi's Chakshu.

To check if an offer letter is fake, verify it through the company's own channels: confirm the sender's email domain, look for the role on the official careers page, use the company's offer verification tool if it has one, and refuse any request for money. A real offer follows a real application and at least one interview. This guide gives you a checklist, the verification tools some large Indian employers provide, and the steps to take if the letter turns out to be fake.

What are the clearest signs that an offer letter is fake?

A demand for money is the clearest sign; a missing interview is the next. Fake offer letters usually show several of these together:

One sign alone may have an innocent explanation. Two or more together should make you stop and verify before replying.

How do you verify an offer letter step by step?

Verify it independently, using contact details you find yourself rather than those in the letter. Here is a process that works for most companies:

1. Recall the trail. Did you apply for this role, and did you take a test or interview? If not, the letter is almost certainly fake.
2. Check the sender's domain. Open the full email header, not just the display name. Infosys warns that scammers can fake the displayed sender, so compare the actual address with the company's real domain.
3. Find the role on the official careers page. Go to the company website directly, not through a link in the letter.
4. Use an official verification tool where one exists. Some employers provide one (see the next section).
5. Call or email the company using details from its official website, and ask HR to confirm your candidate ID or offer reference.
6. Check the company itself if it is not a household name. Our guide to verifying a company before applying covers registration, website and review checks.
7. Pay nothing and send no documents until you are satisfied the offer is real.

Which companies offer an official offer verification tool?

Some large Indian IT employers provide one, and using it is the fastest way to settle doubts. As of October 2026:

• TCS says on its recruitment fraud page that offer letters for IT hires are protected by an offer verification tool, and asks candidates to verify their offer before acting on any recruiter request. It lists careers@tcs.com and its toll-free careers line 1800-209-3111 for reporting fraud.
• Infosys points candidates in India to an offer validation page at career.infosys.com/offerValidation on its fraud alert page.
• Wipro asks candidates to verify any job offer through the careers section of its website and to report suspicious messages to helpdesk.recruitment@wipro.com, according to its fraud awareness page.

For any other company, search for the company name plus "recruitment fraud" on its official website. Many employers publish a fraud notice with their official email domain and a contact for verification. If the company is not on our list, our guides on the TCS hiring process and Infosys hiring process show what a genuine process looks like, so you can spot the gaps.

What does a genuine offer letter usually contain?

A genuine offer letter is specific about you and the role, and it comes after a process you remember. You would normally expect your full name, the designation, the location or a statement that location will be assigned, the compensation structure, the joining date or a statement that it will be communicated later, any conditions such as background verification or document submission, and the name and contact of a real HR person at an official company address.

Content alone is not proof, though. Scammers copy real offer letter templates, logos and signatures. A professional-looking PDF tells you nothing about who sent it. That is why the independent checks above matter more than how the letter looks. Once you are sure it is real, use our guide on what to check in an offer letter to review the terms, and read the difference between an offer letter and an appointment letter.

What do most guides on fake offer letters get wrong?

Most guides tell you to judge the letter by its design: logo quality, letterhead, typos and grammar. That worked years ago. Today fake letters often reuse real templates and are well written, so a clean document can still be fake, and a real offer from a small startup can still have a typo.

The better test is the process around the letter, not the letter itself. Did you apply? Was there an interview? Does the email come from the real company domain? Can the company confirm it through its own channels? Is anyone asking for money or financial details? If the answers are wrong, the quality of the PDF is irrelevant.

A second gap: guides often say "check the company's address on Google". Scammers frequently use the real company's real address. That proves nothing about who sent the letter.

A third gap is timing. Many people relax once they have a genuine offer, but fraud can also arrive after a real selection. If you are waiting for a joining date, a message claiming to be from HR that asks for a "joining fee", a laptop deposit or your bank login is still a scam, even though your original offer was real. Confirm every new request through the official HR contact you already have, not the number or email in the new message.

What should you do if your offer letter is fake?

Stop all contact, do not pay, and report it. If you have not lost money, report the phone number or message on the Chakshu facility of Sanchar Saathi. If you have already paid anything, call 1930 right away and file a complaint under Financial Fraud on cybercrime.gov.in. The portal's FAQ suggests keeping chat transcripts, receipts and bank statements as evidence.

Also report the impersonation to the real company using the fraud contacts on its official site. If you shared Aadhaar, PAN or bank details with the sender, watch your accounts closely and read our guide on how to report a job scam in India for the full process.

Remember that government services do not charge you either. The National Career Service states that it charges no fee at any stage of registration, application or interview.

FAQ

How can I verify a TCS offer letter?

TCS says on its official recruitment fraud page that offer letters for IT hires are protected by an offer verification tool, and asks candidates to verify their offer there before acting on any request. Genuine TCS hiring emails come only from @tcs.com, and TCS does not charge any fee. Report suspected fraud to careers@tcs.com or 1800-209-3111.

How do I check whether an Infosys offer letter is real?

Infosys points candidates in India to its offer validation page at career.infosys.com/offerValidation. It also says recruiters write only from @infosys.com, that displayed sender names can be faked, that hiring includes at least one interview, and that it never asks for money or bank, tax or card details during recruitment.

Is an offer letter without an interview genuine?

Almost never for a regular job. Infosys and Wipro both say their hiring includes at least one virtual or in-person interview, and most employers test or interview candidates before making an offer. If you received an offer letter for a role you did not apply for or interview for, treat it as fake until the company confirms it through official channels.

Can a fake offer letter come from a real-looking company email?

Yes. Scammers register look-alike domains with small spelling changes, and Infosys warns that the displayed sender domain can be faked. Open the full email address or header and compare it character by character with the official website domain. When in doubt, contact the company using details from its official site, not those in the email.

What should I do if I already paid money for a fake offer letter?

Stop all payments and call 1930 immediately with your transaction details, then file a Financial Fraud complaint on cybercrime.gov.in. Tell your bank, save the offer letter, emails and chats, and report the impersonation to the real company's recruitment fraud contact. Quick reporting gives the best chance of the money being frozen.

Final thoughts

A real offer letter survives every independent check: the domain matches, the company confirms it, and nobody asks you for money. If something feels off, pause and verify before you share a single document. When you are ready to apply for roles you can trust, browse openings on the Asuraa job board.