Catfishing

Catfishing refers to the creation of a fictitious online persona, or fake identity (typically on social networking platforms), with the intent of deception, usually to mislead a victim into an online romantic relationship or to obtain some illegal financial gain through fraud, such as the pig butchering scam, or through sextortion. The motivation for catfishing may also be just the desire to feel more popular or to experiment with sexual preferences.

Perpetrators, usually referred to as catfish, generally use fake photos and lie about their personal lives to present themselves as more attractive for financial gain, personal satisfaction, evasion of legal consequences, or to troll. They often love bomb the victim, but refuse to have video call or talk on the phone so that they cannot be verified, their IP address does not match the city of their supposed location, refuse or repeatedly postpone meeting in person, have inconsistencies with name, pictures, or information appearing on their profiles, or request money while isolating victims from real-life social circles by insisting the relationship remain a secret. Public awareness surrounding catfishing has increased in recent years, partially attributed to an increase in the occurrence of the practice combined with a number of high-profile instances.