Behind the VPN: Companies are now catching location spoofing at work

Corporate forensic and verification firms report a rise in location spoofing by hybrid and gig workers, with cases often uncovered during audits, compliance reviews or client checks. Some employees have used travel routers or similar tools to mask their actual work location, leading to disciplinary action, including termination. Experts say companies detect such mismatches through existing security and compliance systems, rather than active surveillance, by analysing IP data, login patterns and GPS checks.