The truth is, you don't need anything elaborate to expose a fraudster. Give a very simple programmatic task, a paper (or a blackboard) and a pencil. As you wat

The truth is, you don't need anything elaborate to expose a fraudster. Give a very simple programmatic task, a paper (or a blackboard) and a pencil. As you watch the interviewee elaborate his solution, and as you discuss it with them, you'll immediately see if programs are a deeply foreign object to their mind, or something they're fluent with. The point is not syntax, forgotten semicolons, or even knowledge of libraries. Don't bother with design patterns either, the kind of tasks we're talking about is too simplistic for them to be meaningful: just watch whether translating a task into program snippets comes naturally to them. If they can do that, they can learn, and probably have learnt a great bit already.