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SALT LAKE CITY — Recent surveys say a shocking number of people lie about themselves during job interviews. But career counselors in Utah say it's really difficult to get away with it anymore.

Four out of five of people have embellished about themselves to look good during an interview. Researchers from the University of Massachusetts say 81 percent of people have lied about themselves while speaking with employers.

Of course, there are degrees of lying. OCM Lee Hecht Harrison of Utah CEO Dave Hilbig said on the lesser extreme, he has seen cases where someone with four years of experience rounded that up to five. But on the other extreme, there have been many cases in which someone would claim to have a degree or a certification that they never studied.

He said the country has been through tough economic times and some people are feeling desperate to get work.

"The temptation becomes stronger to, maybe, indicate they had a degree when they didn't quite complete their schooling, or other things," he said.

Despite how desperate people may feel, Hilbig said there are too many ways for potential employers to uncover the truth. And if they do, the liar will be worse off for it.

"Through reference checks, checking for transcripts, calling employers and there is so much information available online, it's becoming very difficult to do that sort of thing (lying)," he said.

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Hilbig believes people will be better off if they don't misrepresent themselves at all.

A recent survey showed that extroverted people are more likely to lie than introverts.

"They may get a little carried away, whether it's intentional or unintentional," Hilbig said.

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