When looking for a new job while still employed, what are some ways that a prospective company can confirm your current employment without contacting your employer?

A friend of mine has been looking to leave her company due to the toxic work environment and rampant dysfunction. It’s a small company and those who even give a whiff that they might be looking have experienced an even worse situation including retaliation. Essentially, they become a target.

This friend has gone through a few successful rounds of interviews and their recruiter now states that they have to contact the current employer to verify employment.

There must be some way around this, since surely hiring companies must know how problematic and potentially job-jeopardizing it would be to tip off your current employer that you’re interviewing elsewhere.

Any ways around this?