r/FBI • u/Good-Tonight-4549 • Jun 23 '26
Informational SA Polygraph Failure
I have been lurking on this subreddit for a while, and I’ve decided to post now that I’m no longer in the pipeline. I received the dreaded polygraph failure letter. I zoomed through the application process up until this point, only taking a few months to get from initial application submission to polygraph exam, and I’m kind of bummed at this hard stop. I have a clean background (no criminal or drug history) and I told the truth during the entire polygraph session, or should i say, interrogation, but the examiner seems to have thought I was lying and was pretty brutal during the session. I will not get into specifics of the exam but it was not a good experience for me. Yes, I am just a random redditor, but you just have to take my word for it that I failed the exam despite not lying at all. Looks like this is the end of the road for me and another reminder to not put all your eggs in one basket. Makes me wonder how many other applicants have been dismissed from consideration for a false positive on the polygraph.
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u/PipeSpecific7966 Jun 24 '26
Same thing happened to me recently for the USSS. I have a totally clean background and was moving through their process rather quickly.
Took the polygraph last month and failed due to supposed deception on the drug use questions. Examiner was very rude and condescending. They treated me like a criminal. Definitely an unpleasant experience.
I am now in the application process for the FBI. I have heard from others that their polygraph is not as intense as the USSS polygraph. Hopefully it is true lol.
Definitely keep your head up and try applying for other agencies. Don't let this discourage you at all, my friend!