What counts as a ghost posting on The Hiring Index?

A posting is flagged as "likely ghost" when it has been continuously active on a company's ATS for 90 or more days and no confirmed hire has been reported in The Hiring Index's candidate database for that specific role. Repost patterns — the same role taken down and relisted — are also factored in. Federal jobs and high-turnover daily-refresh boards are excluded.

How often is the ghost postings list updated?

Ghost posting detection runs nightly. ATS APIs from Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby, Workday, and other platforms are scanned each night. Posting durations are updated and newly qualified ghost listings are added automatically.

Can I report a ghost posting I applied to?

Yes. If you applied to a job and received no response, submitting a report on The Hiring Index helps establish the ghost pattern for that specific posting. Even a "no response" outcome is valuable data that helps other candidates make informed decisions.

Ghost Postings

Name: Ghost Job Postings — The Hiring Index
Creator: The Hiring Index
License: https://therespectindex.com/independence

Roles from company ATS platforms that have been active 90+ days with no reported hire. Federal jobs, remote job boards, continuously-open pipeline roles, and non-US listings are excluded. See methodology for why.

Last updated Sep 23, 2026

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Ghost Hall of Fame

The 25 longest-running ghost postings in America — ranked by days active

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A ghost posting is a job listing that remains active for an extended period with no evidence of hiring activity. Companies post ghost jobs to build candidate pipelines, satisfy internal processes, or appear to be growing. We flag listings active 90+ days or reposted 3+ times without a reported hire.

PT Sales Associate

Tory Burch · Leesburg, VA

Verified 98 days ago · Dispute this flag

Likely Ghost596 days activeView original posting →See the evidence →Report →

Staff Data Center Architect - Network Communications

Northrop Grumman · Chantilly, VA

Verified 98 days ago · Dispute this flag

Likely Ghost579 days activeView original posting →

Ghost posting detection runs nightly. Data sourced from public ATS APIs. Federal and daily-refresh sources excluded.