ML Engineer Faces Job Rejections After Defunct Startup Deletes LinkedIn Page and Website
An ML engineer faces job rejections as a shutdown startup erased all digital employment proof.
A machine learning engineer has turned to the internet for advice after facing repeated job rejections due to an unusual verification issue—his former employer, a now-defunct startup, has completely vanished from the internet. The professional claimed that companies, including Swiggy, were unable to verify his past employment during background checks, raising concerns despite his legitimate work experience.
According to the engineer, the startup had begun struggling financially about a year ago, prompting the appointment of a senior executive in an attempt to revive operations. However, the situation continued to deteriorate as employees gradually exited, eventually leading to the company’s shutdown. What followed created an unexpected challenge—the complete erasure of the startup’s digital footprint, including its website and professional profiles.
Sharing his experience on Reddit, the techie revealed that the company’s LinkedIn page, which previously had over 15,000 followers, had disappeared, and the official website was no longer accessible. This lack of online presence has made it difficult for recruiters to verify his employment claims, a crucial step in hiring processes at many large firms.
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Although the engineer possesses supporting documents such as payslips, an exit email, and a No Objection Certificate (NOC) on company letterhead, these have not been sufficient to satisfy all recruiters. He also mentioned that since the startup did not provide provident fund contributions, there is no government-linked employment record to support his claims. While the former CEO has offered to assist with verification, some companies have still declined to proceed after learning about the situation.
The case highlights a growing challenge in the modern job market, where digital presence plays a critical role in employment validation. For professionals emerging from small or failed startups, the absence of verifiable online records can become a serious hurdle, raising broader questions about how companies assess credibility and how job seekers can safeguard proof of their work history in an increasingly digital hiring ecosystem.
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