Latest news with #SuhailDoshi
Economic Times
10-07-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
No moonlight shadows: How tech's trust-based culture opened the door to hidden dual employment
Agencies The case of software engineer Soham Parekh being outed by Mixpanel co-founder Suhail Doshi earlier this month, for 'moonlighting across multiple startups and scamming employers', has reignited an uncomfortable truth in the tech world. Moonlighting is no longer confined to a certain hierarchy, or harmless side gigs. It's now a sophisticated, high-stakes risk that even experienced and high-profile professionals are engaging are individuals who appear credible, talented and full of promise, often acing interviews, impressing decision-makers, and securing roles in fast-growing or established tech organisations eager for top talent. With most organisations now adept at using AI-based tools and technologies, tech professionals increasingly have the opportunity to deliver work faster and more efficiently, sometimes making it harder to detect whether their billable and non-billable time is being fully dedicated to the employer's benefit. At the same time, some take advantage of the speed, informality and trust-based culture that defines many tech organisations to engage in dual employment, putting companies at risk of financial losses, data breaches, operational disruption and reputational harm. In sectors where Indian tech firms work in the US or European markets - especially in SaaS, fintech or healthtech - moonlighting raises serious concerns over data confidentiality, GDPR compliance and IP protection. In India, the legal position on moonlighting remains fragmented. For most tech companies, the decision hinges on employment contracts that may include exclusivity clauses, confidentiality agreements and non-compete provisions. However, many organisations - particularly those in growth phases - tend to lack robust or standardised employment contracts. This often results in informal, or loosely-structured, employment terms, especially when hires are made quickly through networks and referrals. Absence of clear contractual terms creates ambiguity, which can be exploited to engage in dual employment without consequence. Even when such clauses exist, enforcement remains a challenge, especially in today's environment of remote work and a growing sentiment among employees regarding desirability of multiple gigs to expand their income how can fast-growing or evolving tech companies strengthen their defences against such incidents, while safeguarding sensitive data, upholding client trust and maintaining productivity? The following steps could help: Screen behaviour, not just skills Hiring processes should move beyond technical assessments to include behavioural evaluations and ethical judgement tests to reduce risk of bringing in individuals with questionable integrity. Robust employment background checks can also help verify credentials, past employment history and flag potential risks. Employment terms at the offer state Cutting corners in employment contracts can leave the door wide open for ethical grey zones, moonlighting risks and legal disputes. Key employment terms - policies on moonlighting, conflicts of interest, confidentiality, permissible external work, etc - should be defined from the outset, along with the consequences of violations such as termination, legal action or financial penalties. This contractual clarity minimises misunderstandings or manipulative behaviour down the line. Strike a balance Consider whether certain critical or sensitive roles benefit from in-person presence. While remote work offers flexibility, it can sometimes make it harder to spot early warning signs of dual employment or misrepresentation. A thoughtful balance between remote and in-office roles can help strengthen oversight where it matters most. Protect IP and data For tech companies, data and IP are lifeblood of the business, often their most valuable assets. Prioritising robust data privacy protocols and IP protection measures that go beyond just IT security are critical, including strong confidentiality clauses, controlled data access and clear expectations for ethical conduct. Tech-governance in real time Digital tools and advanced verification technologies can help flag unusual patterns, overlapping employment or undisclosed affiliations, often before they escalate into larger risks. Continuous, discreet monitoring not only strengthens internal controls, but also serves as an early warning system for potential conflicts of interest or ethical breaches. In cases where it's permitted, monitoring should be clearly defined in the organisation's policies, balancing respect for employee privacy and compliance with local employment laws. Draw the line before it's crossed Mandatory declarations and disclosures, clearly articulated in contracts and policies, should define what's permissible and what constitutes a breach of trust. This is where global standards like ISO 37009:2021 on conflict of interest can play a vital role in establishing appropriate guard can lead to loss of revenue, conflicts of interest, and integrity, compliance and reputational risks for organisations. Along with having clearly defined policies and procedures, companies need to implement robust internal controls and sanctions frameworks to prevent and detect unwarranted moonlighting activities. Singh is global markets & India leader, EY Forensic & Integrity Services, and Bhatt is technology sector leader, EY (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. Markets need to see more than profits from Oyo Can Grasim's anti-competition charge against Asian Paints stand amid intense war Engine fuel switches or something else? One month on, still no word on what crashed AI 171 Delhivery survived the Meesho curveball. Can it keep on delivering profits? Stock Radar: Page Industries breaks out from Cup & Handle formation; stock hits fresh 52-week high For risk-takers with ability to stay invested for the long term: 5 small-caps from different sectors with upside potential of 5 to 32% Multibagger or IBC - Part 14: This auto ancillary with double-digit net margins is now getting EV-focused These mid-cap stocks with 'Strong Buy' & 'Buy' recos can rally over 25%, according to analysts
Fast Company
08-07-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
‘The /r/overemployed king': A serial moonlighter was exposed for holding 19 jobs at Silicon Valley startups
A software engineer became X's main character last week after being outed as a serial moonlighter at multiple Silicon Valley startups. 'PSA: there's a guy named Soham Parekh (in India) who works at 3–4 startups at the same time,' wrote Suhail Doshi, the founder of AI design company Playground, on X on Tuesday. 'He's been preying on YC companies and more. Beware.' In the comments, founders of other Silicon Valley companies shared similar stories of interviewing, hiring, and often firing the engineer. 'LMFAOOO I INTERVIEWED THIS GUY YESTERDAY BRO IM DYINGG,' Cluely CEO Roy Lee posted on X. Digger CEO Igor Zalutski said his company 'nearly hired him,' adding 'he seemed so sharp and no-bs during the interviews.' Following the revelation, a database named SohamTracker sprang up, revealing that Parekh has held at least 19 jobs since 2021—at least five of which he started in just the last two months. 'This is pretty hilarious actually lmao. could be a skit on silicon valley,' one X user wrote. 'The /r/overemployed king,' another added. On Thursday, Parekh appeared on the podcast TBPN to address the accusations. He admitted he was driven to juggle multiple jobs due to 'dire financial circumstances.' He added: 'I just thought that if I worked multiple places, I can basically help myself alleviate the situation I was in much faster.' Parekh claimed to have been working 140-hour weeks—roughly 20 hours a day—with many of the roles requiring in-person attendance. Unsurprisingly, he noted that he's known among friends for not sleeping. While the hustle might be admirable to some, Parekh is hardly alone in embracing Silicon Valley's so-called 'grindset' mentality. The subreddit r/overemployed currently hosts nearly half a million members, where users trade stories about secretly holding down multiple remote jobs. 'We roast Soham Parekh, but remember your company's making you do five people's jobs on one person's salary,' one X user pointed out. Ironically, Parekh's exposure has ended up working in his favor—he landed a new job at Darwin, an AI video remixing startup. Still, his actions may have consequences for others in similar situations. 'After the Soham saga, pretty sure very few YC startups will hire remote Indians,' wrote Varunram Ganesh, head of growth at payroll platform Warp, on X. 'Classic case of one guy exploiting a high-trust society, which leads to downfall of all the others around him.' But 'everyone's favorite founding engineer' insists he meant no harm. 'I don't really care much about the money,' he told TBPN. 'I was really into it for building.'
Hindustan Times
04-07-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
1 engineer, many jobs and a hiring reckoning for tech
Over this week, both Reddit and X were on fire over an Indian engineer named Soham Parekh. On Wednesday Suhail Doshi, a San Francisco-based founder associated with the Y Combinator accelerator startup community, posted a tweet about the engineer, with a word of caution. 'He works at 3-4 startups at the same time and has been preying on YC companies. Beware,' Suhail Doshi posted, adding a screenshot of the person's resume. Within a few hours, his X blew up with other startup founders posting that they had hired or fired Sohan Parekh. At least five founders accused the engineer of moonlighting – or job stacking, a practice of working multiple full-time remote jobs concurrently. Representational Image As tweets tumbled one after the other, many founders revealed they had met the engineer online and were impressed in the interview before they hired him. 'He did so incredibly well in interviews, must have a lot of training,' wrote Flo Crivello, another founder based in San Francisco, adding that the lesson they learnt from this was to always run backdoor checks and spend more time scrolling Twitter. 'He has been doing this for years and works at more than four startups at any given time,' wrote Nicolai Ouporov posting an email from the engineer. 'We realized pretty quickly that he was working at multiple companies and let him go,' wrote New York-based Matthew Parkhurst, joking that hiring Soham seems to be the new rite of passage for startups in San Francisco. Another founder wrote how they had interviewed Parekh in a WeWork and then saw him giving an interview to another startup in the same coworking space. Gerry Tan, president and CEO of YCombinator, posted a meme of Scooby Doo catching a thief. 'The startup guild of YC is a necessary invention to help founders be more successful that they would be alone,' he joked. As the controversy tumbled into a meme, a fake Parekh account blossomed on X and people started to joke about hiring the engineer. And urban legends started doing the rounds -- such as one that suggested that Parekh had several software mules working for him. This is another scam in a list of scams that the Silicon Valley has gone through, but what it tells us is that there is a lack of good quality engineers to hire. Startups in the Valley often end up hiring remote workers – living in other cities or across the world (for instance, it isn't clear where Parekh is based). This and the fact that coding can now be done with AI, has made it possible for smart engineers to take up multiple jobs. There is even a Reddit sub r/overemployed which supports jobstacking and moonlighting. You can potentially have multiple jobs, say no to meeting online or in real life and get multiple salaries. Some startup founders even appreciated the hustle that came with moonlighting this way. What the controversy also shows us is that we're increasingly working with people we haven't met and might not meet in real life. I have worked for and hired remotely on projects. Many a times, it was a few years before I met the people in person. Sometimes, even when you're in the same city, country or state, you end up working on Zoom or Microsoft Teams. With sophisticated video and interactive apps, working remotely with each other is easier. However, as AI-generated fake profiles proliferate, we have also become susceptible to scams. It is becoming increasingly difficult to find out if someone whose profile you saw on LinkedIn is real or not. And I'm not talking about them lying about their credentials. I'm talking about completely synthetic profiles with AI-generated photographs. LinkedIn's transparency report mentioned that in 2024, more than 70 million fake accounts were identified and removed during the registration process. There are high chances today that someone you are friends with online is a synthetic digital persona. With audio-video generation, it has become easier to develop a fake persona, complete with videos and even real-time interaction on Zoom. As these scams become increasingly sophisticated, we will see more of them happening around us – to our friends or our colleagues. But as is the nature of Silicon Valley, the problem of synthetic digital scams has given rise to another industry. Startups are building cryptographically-signed blockchain for digital identity – to protect our identity from being stolen and abused in digital spaces. Next time you give an interview, the startup founder will probably ask you to give a block-chained verifiable digital identity to prove that you're you and that you're real in the video interview. Meanwhile, sit back and enjoy Sohamgate play out on social media. Shweta Taneja is an author and journalist based in the Bay Area.
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First Post
04-07-2025
- Business
- First Post
Soham Parekh and moonlighting: Why this is a rising trend among India techies
Indian techie Soham Parekh has been accused of working for multiple startups in Silicon Valley. His case has shed light on moonlighting, which has seen an uptick in the Indian IT sector. But why do some employees work second jobs while holding full-time employment? And why is it a red flag for many employers? read more Moonlighting is once again grabbing headlines after an Indian tech professional was accused of working for multiple startups in Silicon Valley. The case came to light after Suhail Doshi, co-founder and former CEO of analytics platform Mixpanel, called out Soham Parekh on X for his alleged actions. Moonlighting has been a contentious topic in India, despite the concept being prevalent in other nations. The phenomenon has increased in recent years, especially in the Indian tech sector. But why? STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Let's take a closer look. Rise of moonlighting in the India IT sector Moonlighting, or holding a second job while having full-time employment, has increased in India since remote work became common during the Covid-19 pandemic. According to background verification firm AuthBridge, five out of every 100 candidates have two jobs. Roughly 90 per cent of these cases are from the IT services sector, mostly in Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, Times of India (TOI) reported. Background verification firm OnGrid has already conducted 23,000 employment verifications in the first six months of 2025, compared to the total of 26,000 last year. The main factor behind the rise in such checks is moonlighting. The firm's screening found 2,900 such cases in the first half of this year, a jump from 2,201 in the entire 2024, as per TOI. Randstad India's report in 2023 revealed a 25-30 per cent surge in moonlighting over the past three years in the Indian IT sector. A 2022 report by job portal Indeed found that 43 per cent of employees in the I ndian tech sector were in favour of moonlighting. However, employees in many other sectors opposed holding simultaneous jobs as most of them considered it 'unethical'. As per the portal's findings, less than one out of five employees, or 19 per cent, surveyed by Indeed wanted to moonlight in India, while the remaining were not interested in getting an additional job. Moonlighting has been a contentious topic in India. Representational Image/Pixabay While employees in other sectors may not approve of the practice, moonlighting remains acceptable among Indian techies. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD A 2022 survey by Mumbai-based Kotak Institutional Equities found that nearly 65 per cent of IT employees said they or someone they knew had been moonlighting or pursuing part-time opportunities while doing remote work. Why do employees moonlight? Amid job uncertainty and poor hikes, employees are seeking ways to meet their financial needs. Many young tech workers are resorting to moonlighting for the money they are unable to make in their first job. 'The root cause is the money, software developers are not paid proportionate to the amount of work that they are doing. I think a lot of us would not moonlight if we feel we are paid fairly,' Abhishek, a software developer in Bangalore, told CNBC in 2023. Moonlighting is not new in India, but it has become more common since the pandemic brought job uncertainty. Speaking to BBC, employment-law expert Veena Gopalakrishnan said that the practice has 'become more rampant post-pandemic, with employees working remotely, infrequent or relaxed employer supervision, and increased time and bandwidth for employees to take up another job'. As per Indeed's report, techies and a few others who engage in a side hustle do so for two main reasons: to safeguard against job loss and supplement their incomes. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'These include the desire to supplement their income due to low salaries and rising inflation, the need for financial independence, the impact of the pandemic on job security, and the quest for entrepreneurial pursuits,' Sashi Kumar, head of sales at Indeed India, was quoted as saying by CNBC. While salaries are comparatively better in Bengaluru, also known as the 'Silicon Valley of India', the cost of living is also higher. But money is not always the reason for employees to moonlight. Some are pursuing their passions or upskilling through a secondary job. Rajan, a full-time employee at a leading software company in Bengaluru, told BBC in 2022 that he has his own YouTube Channel, which he runs anonymously and monetises through advertisements. 'I belong to a middle-class family and have ambitions of studying abroad, and this will help me fund it,' he said. 'The pandemic made me realise that one has to be prepared for the unexpected and have a buffer of savings. I work from home, so I am able to manage both well.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Some are working more than one job to grow their contacts. 'With this (working two jobs), one could earn extra and be prepared for the worst. Right now, the scenario is different, but besides money, one can also make contacts, and you will never be short of jobs,' a Delhi-based techie told CNBC-TV18. But moonlighting comes at a cost. Some employees face fatigue and sleep deprivation when they log on to their full-time employment while holding a second job. But even that is not a deterrent for moonlighters. Why employers are unhappy For many employers, moonlighting is a red flag. In 2022, Wipro fired 300 of its employees who were also working for its rival companies. Rishad Premji, the chairman of the tech and consulting firm, said on X about moonlighting in the tech industry: 'This is cheating - plain and simple.' Infosys, which warned its employees that 'dual employment is not permitted' in September 2022, later softened its stance on moonlighting. As per reports, India's second-largest IT services company allowed employees to take up 'gig work' with the prior consent of managers. To curb moonlighting, some companies have started calling back employees to the office or carrying out productivity checks to identify possible slackers. As per the Indeed report, 31 per cent of employers are of the view that employees moonlight as they are not completely engaged in their work, while 23 per cent believe that workers have ample time to hold a second job. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Some companies, however, have allowed employees to take up a side hustle, given that there is no conflict of interest. However, Gopalakrishnan told BBC that it is uncommon for employers to get on board with employees taking other jobs when 'there is a conflict of interest, a risk to confidential or proprietary information, or likelihood of the employee's productivity being impacted'. But, at the end, employers may have to bend rules to allow employees to moonlight, at least in the tech sector in India. India is witnessing a talent crunch, specifically skilled labour. 'Talent is scarce today and … if you need the best talent, you got to embrace what the talent likes,' Viswanath PS, managing director and CEO of Randstad India, said to CNBC. 'Previously, the second job was a need for employees, now it has become a want. Once it becomes a want, it's about how employers can pave the way in making accommodations and ensure that both parties' interests are equally protected.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With inputs from agencies
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Everyone in tech has an opinion about Soham Parekh
You got into Y Combinator, raised $20 million from a16z, and then exited to Meta? That's cool, I guess. But did Soham Parekh apply to work at your startup? There is now a new badge of honor for startup founders: your proximity to one previously unknown Indian software engineer named Soham Parekh. The Anna Delvey of Silicon Valley was outed on Wednesday when former Mixpanel CEO Suhail Doshi posted on X to warn fellow founders about Parekh. 'PSA: there's a guy named Soham Parekh (in India) who works at 3-4 startups at the same time. He's been preying on YC companies and more. Beware,' Doshi wrote. 'I fired this guy in his first week and told him to stop lying/scamming people. He hasn't stopped a year later.' Now, the post has over 20 million views, with founders and investors from across the tech industry weighing in. And before Andy Jassy asks — could this have all been avoided if more companies returned to the office? No, some people are just bad managers. According to Doshi, at least three founders have reached out to say that they had fired or were currently employing Parekh. In the age of subreddit communities like r/overemployed, where members talk about how to get away with working multiple remote jobs at once, this revelation isn't all that surprising. What's more interesting is how widely the responses to his actions vary (to be fair, no one ever said that the tech industry was known for its moral fiber). To some in the tech community, Parekh has the makings of a folk hero, deceiving well-funded startups and sticking it to the man. To others, he's an immoral liar who screwed over startups and took jobs away from people who actually would have given their all. Many are impressed by how he managed to get through so many notoriously competitive interview processes, while others think he should parlay his 15 minutes of fame into founding his own startup. 'If Soham immediately comes clean and says he was working to train an AI agent for knowledge work, he raises at $100M pre by the weekend,' Box CEO Aaron Levie wrote on X. Chris Bakke — the founder of Laskie, a job-matching platform acquired by X — thinks that Soham should embrace his reputation. 'Soham Parekh needs to start an interview prep company. He's clearly one of the greatest interviewers of all time,' Bakke wrote. 'He should publicly acknowledge that he did something bad and course correct to the thing he's top 1% at.' Meanwhile, Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan took the opportunity to pat himself on the back. 'Without the YC community this guy would still be operating and would have maybe never been caught,' Tan wrote. 'The startup guild of YC is a necessary invention to help founders be more successful than they would be alone.' Why did he do it? Parekh says that this wasn't part of some grand plan — he claims he had no plan at all, and he was trying to make a lot of money very quickly to get himself out of a bad financial situation. 'I really did not think this through,' Parekh said in a live interview with TBPN. 'It was an action that was done more out of desperation.' Parekh did not address Doshi's allegation that the bulk of his resume was fake. 'What's also funny is, you know, some of the memes,' he said. 'I'm very new to Twitter. I joined Twitter yesterday, so this was a lesson for me in social media in general.' (Twitter has long been known as X, of course.) You don't have to hand it to him, but he's a pretty good poster for someone who's been on the platform for a day. One of his few posts was a response to LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, who asked what people think Parekh's LinkedIn header would be. 'I don't have a LinkedIn,' Parekh replied. For what it's worth, his X header is on the money, even if he won't bother with LinkedIn. It's the meme of Flynn Rider from the Disney movie 'Tangled' — a smug-looking guy about to state a controversial opinion, surrounded by knives on all sides.
