Catfishing happens when a person, referred to as a catfish, creates a fake identity and puts it out on the internet. They usually take a photo of an attractive person and use it as their own. For example, the photo attached to this article would be ideal for use by a catfish. It depicts an attractive Asian woman who has obviously won a beauty contest. Based on this photo, the catfish would then create a backstory. They would give the person a name and a phony identity, set up accounts with Facebook and other social networking sites, and begin the process of contacting their potential victims.
In the case of Manti Te'O, the fake identity went under the name Lennay Kekua, a leukemia patient. Her tragic life and death was heartbreaking. At least it would have been, had she actually existed. Once he discovered that her existence was a hoax, Manti Te'O was apparently so embarrassed that he had been victimized in this way, that he perpetuated the story even after he knew it was a hoax.
Don't let yourself be victimized by a catfish. Do not accept friend requests on Facebook or other social networking sites if you do not know the person. Do not give out too much information about yourself to strangers. Do not become entangled in a relationship with someone unless you are absolutely sure they really exist.
Catfishers defraud other people for many reasons. Sometimes they are trying to scam their victims for money. In other cases, they simply like a challenge, and they want to see if they can really fool someone else. Sometimes a catfish creates a phony persona as a way to embarrass or harm a specific person as a type of cyber bullying. Whatever the reason behind the fraud, everyone needs to be aware of this trend and take steps to protect themselves.
You are reading from the blog: http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com
Photo of beauty queen courtesy of www.morfile.com
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