[gfaure]

Adoption makes it entirely possible for an Asian-presenting person to have a European first name _and_ surname and, frankly, is not something you should be asked about in an interview.

[Kiro]

Of course, in theory, there's a possibility that someone named Simon Cartwright, with a North Korean accent, who has amnesia and can't remember a thing about the place they claim they grew up in, is actually not a spy. I personally don't think that's a situation where an employer is required to give the benefit of the doubt.

[n4r9]

How many employers can reliably distinguish a North Korean accent from a South Korean one?

[mlyle]

Don't ask about it in the interview.

But it might be worth paying extra attention to any clues that they might not have lived in that place and have a falsified history.

As he said, "we should treat each individual with respect and assumption of good intent." But a decent proportion of people showing this particular characteristic will be engaging in employment fraud, and we shouldn't be blind to that signal.

[wodenokoto]

It's very rare for kids adopted from Asia to Europe to have an Asian accent.

[callalex]

I know more than one, and I don’t even live in Europe. Please avoid racial profiling, it’s a fool’s errand.

[exclipy]

You'd expect an adoptee to have perfect English

[MrVandemar]

You can make no such assumption I'm afraid. You might expect a native speaker to have perfect English, but you'd be wrong.

There are people with issues like dyslexia and people who don't fit the education system and perform poorly.

I've met non-native speakers who have far better spelling, grammar and an enlarged vocabulary than people who have lived in my English-speaking country for their whole lives.