15 Ways To Tell You're Being Catfished

Technology has been on the rise for years now, improving, full of innovation every day, updates, everything is new and on a fast track to a fully enhanced future. This technology has also allowed many of us to find love around the world, through online dating and various dating apps, many people have found their soulmate, or so they think. With this new way of finding the people we connect with on a deeper level out in the world, there are people who want to take advantage of the vulnerability of putting yourself out there. With these tips and tricks we can all be aware of all the red flags that pop up when you start talking to the guy you Super Liked last night on Tinder. Be cautious and careful before you go meet someone you met online, there are tons of precautions to take before that big step, let's go through them together!

Catfishing is a term used originally by MTV that describes a person in an online relationship (romantic or friendship), that is lying about who they are, what they do, and/or what they look like, to the person they are communicating to.

15 Video

These fictional online personas that catfishing individuals use can be brought to light simply by asking them to go on camera with you through Skype, or other means. Just because they send you an image, don't be fooled, there are pros out there that can scam left and right when it comes to this, they'll have the answer to everything. Take the necessary steps to deal with this situation, and the most important determining factor of this can be going on video. Even if they don't have the technology to go on video, which posts people do, if they really wanted to they could ask a friend or a family member, or even a coworker! There are ways to show your face even if you don't have a camera and many catfish will use the excuse of not having the right things to do so, call them out on it!

14 Image Search

One of the classic ways to see if someone is lying about who they are online is to do a Google reverse image search, just google 'image search', save the picture you want to test and drag it to the search bar, hopefully, it will come back with no hits, but if it does and it is from other places not including their social media, you will be able to find out the truth quickly. It can be hard confronting a catfish, especially a person who is been in contact with you for a long time and a bond has formed, but it can't go on forever, it is not fair to you or them, they need to grow from their insecurity and in most cases you will want to move on with your life as well, because you deserve better! It is important to get the right information before anything develops, and plus no one likes being lied to!

13 Secrets

Keeping secrets for someone is never a good way to start a relationship or a friendship, never a good idea!

When you find out someone has been keeping secrets from you, not only can it cause massive distrust for relationships in the future, as well as the current, it can make you become a cynic. This is why you have to be the bigger person and move forward, if you meet someone online that's already hiding things from you, or you find something out about them that isn't great about their past, or something similar, you should confront them as soon as possible. Have a discussion about it and if they choose to continue making bad choices and trying to move forward without showing they're truly sorry, it's a sign you need to get out of that situation as fast as possible. People that can actually do that will twist your emotions around and trap you in a relationship like that, get out while you can, and give them space so they can reflect and work on themselves.

12 Excuses

It is exhausting to always have to deal with the excuses from someone you love.

When a person throws excuse after excuse your way, either a friend, family member or someone you love romantically, it hurts, because it is painfully obvious they are trying to avoid time spent together and time where there could be bonding developing. Someone you love, friend or romantically should not be making excuses for wanting to see you or spend time with you. It is a major red flag as well, you never know online if someone is constantly making up excuses because they just do not like you and do not want to say anything because they feel bad, (which is not right at all), or if they are hiding something. When a person does not include you in their plans ever, it is really hard to forward a relationship and build trust for a future together, it is just not possible.

11 Loving Too Soon

When they say 'I love you' the second time they text you, it's not always a good sign.

It's always a red flag when someone you meet online professes their love when they just met you, usually people can't help but wonder if they're just joking, but who would joke about love, and would you really want to be in a relationship where that's the opening joke. No thanks. When you meet someone on the off chance it is love at first sight, or in this case, love at first text, it is possible it's not a red flag, it's just something to be careful of. Many catfish out there just want to pull your emotional heart strings so they can manipulate and use you for something they want, whether that's money, emotional support, or advice. It all comes at a cost to you, and it's not a fair dynamic to entertain.

10 Favors

Asking too many favors right off the bat, they are taking advantage of you.

There is no other way about, when someone is constantly asking you to do favors for them, they are simply using you whether they realize it or not, it is not appropriate or fair to you. You should never be involved in a relationship where you are doing ninety percent of the work to hold the whole thing together while he is just barely doing the other ten. This goes for online relationships and real life, but it is even more seriously of a red flag when it is someone you have met on the internet, if they have tried to guilt you into doing certain things for them, and just overall a constant bombardment of favors, it is a good chance they might be a catfish, so be on the lookout and better be safe than sorry.

9 Broken Cameras

No technology, like I mentioned before, there's always a way even if they don't have a phone or computer.

Like in the tips above, if someone is claiming they love you online, and they don't have a way to show you a live video of their face and them talking to you, there's a key issue there, because there are so many possibilities when it comes to showing your face. The person you're talking to could ask a friend, a family member, or even a co-worker to solve this issue. If they don't it just goes to show you how much they're unwilling to try, or they're simply hiding something they don't want you to see or find out about them. Either way is that really someone you want to spend your life with, I sure don't. It's such a common excuse used when someone is catfishing that their camera is broken, so keep in mind if they say they work a lot they most likely have a phone or some device that can capture image or video, just be wary of that.

8 No Phone

Third time's a charm, NO EXCUSES!

It's very hard to believe that someone of this generation doesn't have a phone, there are so many alternatives out there, such as buying from amazon or Ebay, pay as you go phones, or even the classic tablet or iPod! There are so many options out there, and there are even cheaper options for digital cameras, the quality might not be great, but there are options for people in every price range. It's a common lie among the catfish community to say that they work frequently, yet have no phone, something seems wrong there, or is it just me? When someone tells you that they can only call you, like their calling from a fake number from many sites that can generate a fake number to talk on, or whatever the case may be, it's a common occurrence in catfish stories. People just need to come clean so everyone can move on, or step up and be honest about the situation.

7 Social Media

Most people in this generation have had some form of social media account even if they don't use it regularly.

It's always hard to believe that someone doesn't have any kind of social media accounts. Especially when they meet you through a dating site. You can't help but question if they're really being honest about their technology use. And it's even worse when you find their Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and there's hardly any real connections between what the person has told you and what's on the account of the individual you have been talking to. Or on the other hand, when you do a reverse image search and social media profiles pop up on Google that have millions of followers, and no connection to what they've been telling you. When situations like this happen it's obvious that you're talking to a catfish. Social media is the main way people connect today, it's just very hard to believe that someone doesn't have a relevant social media account to communicate with close friends and family.

6 No Equality

Always turning the blame is a bad bad sign.

Having a lack of equality in a relationship is a bad sign regardless if it's online or in real life. It's even worse when you meet somebody online and with every conversation there's a lack of respect towards you, no one should have to deal with that no matter what. There should always be an aspect of equal partnership in a relationship and that doesn't change just because it's online. When a partner takes advantage of you just because it's over the phone it's your job to confront them and bring up the discussion of equality. In most cases when there's a problem with the quality and some of the other options that have already been mentioned in this list, it's a good chance that you're talking to somebody that's not who they say they are. All relationships should have an equal partnership, in relationships that do that have a better success of turning an online relationship into a real life partnership. The best thing that we can do to make sure that we stay safe when dating online it is to be aware.

5 Too Perfect

Nothing is ever perfect.

He's actually a concept of things being too good to be true. It's perfectly wonderful to have an online relationship that's going smoothly and perfect with little to no altercations, but when it's too good, we have to step back from the romantic pink filter over our eyes and try to view the situation from an outsider's perspective. Try to step into your mother's shoes or your father's, to view your relationship as they would, they have protected you the most throughout your life as a young adult and now that you're on your own making your own relationships, try to have this outsider's perspective when things seem too good to be true, because in most cases they are. It's so easy for a catfish to try to hide things and to keep secrets, to make up stories that get you emotionally connected and happy, while they might be doing it without the intent of harm, you have to remember that lying is harmful no matter what.

4 Fights

It's completely natural to have fights with your significant other, but when it's early on in a relationship it's quite the red flag. When you haven't even met somebody face to face it's always a bad sign when every single conversation starts a fight between both of you. When it's not an online relationship this is a bad sign. You have to make sure that you take the necessary precautions when moving forward in a situation like this, you need to be able to protect yourself, your online media and most importantly your emotions. Like I said before fighting is completely natural and any relationship some might even say that it's healthy. They might not be because of you regardless of whatever he says, it could stem from guilt about lying about who he is, or just simply trying to emotionally get you attached and feel bad about yourself. Both reasons are very common when catfishing comes up in online relationships.

3 Late Night Calls

Suspicious when the person only calls at night.

A common habit among catfishing is when the catfish calls only late at night. Regardless of somebody working all day, it's very hard to believe that the only time that they can communicate even if it's just a text message, is at night. I know that when I'm deeply in love with someone, I make time for them all day no matter what, even when I'm working I make sure to either call or text them during my breaks. Late night calls from the catfish could mean a number of things, but most commonly it's because they're trying to hide something from you that they do during the day whether that be lying about their job or lying about their relationship status. It's, even more, condemning when they won't even answer your phone call during the day or even text you back at that time. Be aware of what's happening and don't let this happen to you because it's manipulative and unfair.

2 Other People

An easy way to see if someone is real or not is to check up with the friends on his friend's list!

If you have the person that you've met online either through dating apps or organically through the web, on Facebook and you're questioning whether they're really who they say they are, an easy way to find out is to strike up a conversation with some of their friends they have on their social media. Getting in contact with their friends by just shooting them a message can really clarify some things without a lot of effort on your part, it can save you time and wasted emotions. That's why the tip above about social media is so important, because many catfish lurking out there are very aware of this tactic, so they generally avoid social media where you can easily see their friends or they won't even tell you about their accounts in the first place.

1 Lies

Back to square one, if you catch them in multiple lies, it's time to move on for good.

Lying is never okay in any relationship online or in real life, when you meet a person online that has many of these tips in common, it's time to sit down and have a conversation about who they really are. Giving them a chance to tell their side of the story is key to being able to both move forward. It takes a strong person to be able to have that conversation and fully listen to what their side of the story is whether that be insecurities confidence issues, or if they were just playing a mean trick. Regardless of what it is it's never the right way to go about meeting people online, it's unfair to you and it wastes time for everyone involved. If they lie to you after you give them the chance to do the right thing, there's no way a relationship can be formed from the base like that. Technology is what's propelling us forward, connecting us, and it's keeping our connections in tact no matter where we are, but when we seek out romantic or even friendly relationships it's so important to be able to protect ourselves.