What is Catfishing?

Have you ever received a text, message, or call from a stranger or an unknown number, and your mind begins to race, wondering if you have ever met this person in your life before? You might even ask yourself if you have forgotten the name of that individual who texted you.

Chances are that you might even wonder if you are heading for a scam. With so many scams in our society, one cannot take a chance. There are 50-50 chances that the person on the other end is genuine and not a scammer. However, you are still skeptical and wonder whether to answer the message or pick up the call from an unknown number. Your concerns are genuine, and “catfishing” threats are real.

What Is Catfishing?

Catfishing is a method adopted by scammers to gain as much information about their potential victims as possible. The scammer may or may not know the victim, and there could be several reasons for the scammer to catfish their victim.

Catfisher will impersonate the identity of a normal individual using stock photos for their account. The details of these are fictitious, with the sole aim of appearing genuine to their victims. Sometimes these scammers will use the details of a real person, using details that are either hacked or purchased through the dark net.

Catfishers can be found everywhere and actively make use of social media platforms, messaging platforms, and dating platforms to pull off scams like Facebook scams, Instagram scams, WhatsApp scams, Telegram scams, Tinder scams, Bumble scams, and so forth.

Although most catfishers are only interested in gathering details with malicious intent, there are a few who will also pull off a romance scam.

The term “catfish” comes from a popular music channel, MTV, which hosted a documentary television series where a couple would interact with each other online and one of the partners would always lie about their lives and identities. This catfish definition term is credited to the music channel MTV.

What Does It Mean To Be Catfished?

Catfisher will create a fake account and fill in details that will appear to be genuine to their target victim. They are quite smart and know human psychology quite well. They will manipulate their intended victim to reveal their deepest secrets that they won’t dare reveal to their close ones.

The imposters will gather information like your entire name, date of birth, old and recent photos, and so forth.

Why Do People Catfish?

There are several reasons why someone wants to victimize their potential target through catfishing. There are instances where catfishers just want some information about their victims, while others may do it with malicious intent.

Nonetheless, some common reasons for some catfishers to gather information about their intended victims are listed below:

Concealed Identity

Some individuals conceal their identity; they become fearless, assuming someone else’s identity so they can act as they want without fear of being identified and judged.

Mental Illness

Some of those with such conditions do not have the necessary confidence to be comfortable in their own skin. Assuming a false persona, they find the necessary confidence to speak their mind.

Revenge

Sometimes, while catfishing, individuals will want to assume the identity of their victim with the sole intent of making them look bad. These catfishers want revenge and want to destroy the lives of their intended victims.

Insecurity

Some individuals have low self-esteem; by concealing their identity, they become fearless. They do this because they do not like anything about themselves. By assuming a fake persona, they gain new confidence and will act in ways that are totally opposite to their normal behavior.

Targeted Harassment

Some catfishers enjoy it when they see their victims suffer. The more their victim is in pain, the more they enjoy it. This is a type of cyberstalking.

Sexual Exploration

Some catfishers will assume an identity and want to experiment and explore their sensuality. They will assume the role of a fake persona to satisfy their sensuality, which may be totally opposite to the one they have and practice in their real lives.

Loneliness

Sometimes individuals are lonely and find it challenging to express themselves. Taking on the role of a fictitious individual, they find the necessary strength to communicate and spend time with others.

Financial Gains

Sometimes catfishers are solely interested in financial gains; they will either pull their victims in a romance scam or they will gather enough information to target the individual in an identity theft and pull off fraudulent activities.

10 Tell Tale Warning Signs – You’re Being Catfished

As we have mentioned, scammers or catfishers will assume different identities for various reasons, and you do not know the real intention or motive behind their act. Thus, it is best that you avoid communicating with such individuals to be on the safer side. We have mentioned a few red flags that are common during catfishing.

Avoiding Video Calls

While catfishing, scammers will ensure that their identity remains concealed. Answering a video call can blow their cover. It is for this reason that they will frequently make some excuses just to avoid a video call. Every time you wish to have a video call, they are unavailable. This is a sure sign that they do not want to disclose their true identity.

Few Friends And Family In Their Lists

There are two reasons why these catfishers would have a few friends and family members on their contact list. First, they want to keep a low profile and do not wish to have a huge number of followers on their contact list, which could blow their cover.

Second, they may create a new account once they get caught. So their account may be recent and have a few followers.

Avoid Meeting

Catfishing is successful as long as the perpetrator is not identified. It is for this reason that they avoid meeting their victim in person. As we have mentioned, sometimes a catfisher is someone that the victim may know and might have also met face-to-face.

Catfishers want to keep their identities as secret as possible. There may be another possibility that these catfishers are not from the same country or even continent. Thus, they avoid meeting their victim in person.

Expect Expensive Gifts and Money

Some catfishers would pull their victims into a romance scam. They may have met their victim on social media platforms like Facebook or might also pull off a Tinder scam by enticing their potential victim on Tinder, a dating app.

These catfishers may expect expensive gifts and money as they convince their victim that this is the way to show their love and affection. They may also frequently ask for money under various excuses. They may even ask for money to help them with their travel plans. If you find out that the person is constantly asking for money, then it is better to wise up and stop entertaining that person.

New Profile

Catfishing is only successful as long as the cover is not blown. However, when these catfishers get caught in the act, they delete their fake account and create a new one. A newly created accounting firm will not have as many friends, family, and followers in its contact list.

Thus, if you encounter someone who has recently created an account, then you need to proceed with caution, as you could possibly be heading towards a scam.

Stolen Pictures

Since these scammers create fake accounts, they avoid sharing their own photos. They frequently use stock photos that are easily available online. You can always cross-verify the picture using reverse image search tools. If the identity of the person you met online is different from the one found online, you could be a target of catfishing.

Asking For Explicit Content

If someone you have just met online starts to ask for explicit content, then you must refrain from providing it to them. Never share your photos or videos that are in a compromised position. Such content can be used against you.

Few Images

Catfishers use stock images to lure in their potential victims. Since these images are few in number, they have a very limited option of uploading them on their fake account. If the user does not change or update their latest photos, you might have encountered a catfisher.

Overly Excited

Regardless of falling in love with you or pursuing you to be a part of a business proposition, these catfishers will try to frequently persuade you to be a part of it. They will quickly confess their love or will stress the importance of the business proposition frequently.

If someone wants to take the relationship to the next level after a few online encounters, then it is wise to approach them with skepticism.

Small Online Presence

We live in a digital age where almost everyone has multiple online presence on various social media platforms. Catfishers are scammers, and they will create a fake account that they will normally use to interact with their victims. Since they do not wish to have a large online presence and managing multiple accounts can be tedious, they have a small web presence.

How to deal with being catfished

Understanding how to spot catfish is one thing; understanding what measures to take is another. Now that you are well versed in how catfishing occurs, we will recommend steps that will help you avoid falling for their tricks and scams.

Avoid Communicating With Them

Once you realize that you have been a victim of catfishing, you must stop all kinds of communication with them.

Block Them

You need to block them on all the accounts that you are using. This step will ensure that any updates on your accounts cannot be viewed by the catfisher. It will also ensure that the catfisher cannot contact you in the future.

Report Them

It is important that you report to the higher authorities on the platform that was used to contact you. It will notify the relevant authorities and take the required steps.

If you have sent money or cryptocurrencies to the catfisher, then contact your local police department, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, your district attorney and state general attorney, and the Federal Trade Commission.

Outsmarting A Catfish: X Cybersecurity Tips

After understanding how these catfishers operate, how they target, and what to do if you have fallen victim to them, you now need to know how to completely avoid falling victim to them.

Exercise Caution

When you interact with someone online or get a call from a stranger, it is wise to limit the amount of information you share. Even if you are romantically involved, you must avoid divulging sensitive information that you wouldn’t share with your close ones. Try to scrutinize every word they say, as you do not know their background, motives, or even intentions.

Request Audio And Video Calls

If a person is genuine, then they would like to be on call. Catfishers, on the other hand, will avoid any sort of audio or video communication as it will reveal who they actually are. If you are heading into a relationship and someone frequently avoids answering an audio or video call, then you can be sure that you are heading for a romance scam.

Reverse Image Search

It is advisable that you do a reverse image search of the account of the individual who has sent you a friend request and whom you have never met. If the name in the search does not match the name of the individual who is trying to woe you, then you could be heading for a scam. As mentioned earlier, catfishers use stock images that are available online for their accounts.

Do Your Research

When you want to go on a date through a dating app or you receive a request on Tinder, it is advisable that you do research and verify if the person is what they say they are. This will help you avoid falling victim to a Tinder scam.

Cross Verify

If the person is saying that they are near your location, then ask them those questions that Google won’t know but a local person might. This will help you understand that the person is who they say they are and does indeed stay near your location.

Privacy Setting

All social media accounts give you, as the user, the option of deciding who can view your posts and messages and who cannot. Having such a privacy setting will safeguard your account, and those who want to catfish will find it difficult to gather information about you.

Ask For Advice

If you have any doubts regarding the online relationship you are experiencing, you should seek answers to those questions from those who are close to you. This will be extremely useful if you are suspicious about the individual you met online and have not met face-to-face.

FAQs About Online Catfishing

If you still are not clear on “What does catfish mean?” or “Why is it called catfishing?” then following commonly asked questions will help you relax and clear up any confusion you may have.

In the early 1900s, anglers used to ship cod from Alaska to China. Since the trip was long and to keep the cod alive, these anglers used to release catfish that would chase them. The name gained popularity after 2010, because, like catfish, which used to keep cods on their toes, these online catfish keep you on your toes by misleading you about what is genuine and what is not. 

While interacting with a total stranger you have just met online and you are unsure whether the details that they share are real or not, then you are a victim of a catfish.

Catfishing online is a term used to describe those who will use fake identities to lure their targeted or potential victim into their trap. They may obtain every bit of information from their victims as conceivable.

Several catfishers will use their fake identities to infiltrate dating apps. If you are involved with a catfisher, it would take you several months just to realize it. Most romance scams begin this way.

Most of the catfishing is usually pulled off to scam someone, troll them, or harass them. These individuals are willing to gain monetary benefits in the form of money or cryptocurrency. Or they may just seek pleasure from it.

There are rare instances where a person with low self-esteem may not have the necessary guts to speak their mind but can do so through fake identities. They may also do so to avoid being judged or to avoid embarrassing feelings.

Final Thoughts

It is important that you do not fall victim to catfishing, as you have no idea who is behind the handling of that account. There are huge chances that you might be a bit curious about the person operating that account, which may also woe you into trusting and liking them. However, you have not met the person in real life, and anyone out there who wishes to keep their identity a secret can be a potential threat. You do not know their intentions or motives, and it is wiser to avoid entertaining them to avoid heartache and a possible financial blunder.