Dating apps and social media have made finding love and connection much easier. However, the way we frequently interact with strangers online these days has led to a major issue with catfishing.

"Catfishing" is the act of using a fake identity online to deceive or manipulate someone - often for financial gain. The term was made popular because of Nev Schulman’s MTV show Catfish, which documents real life instances of people meeting their catfish face-to-face.

There’s a number of reasons why people catfish—some are looking to scam victims out of their money (often referred to as a romance scam including sextortion), while others are genuinely looking for a romantic relationship, but hide behind a fake profile out of insecurity and/or low self-esteem.

Unfortunately, both online dating sites and social media platforms tend to be a hot spot for catfishers and scammers to find victims. While many dating websites are cracking down on fake accounts, crafting a fake dating profile or social media account is still relatively easy to do with a few stolen selfies taken from a real person.

If you're wondering whether you're being catfished, this quiz can help you assess the situation and make an informed decision about what to do next.

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This quiz will reveal there are some standard red flags that you can look out for in order to avoid being catfished. If the person in question refuses to video chat/facetime or meetup in real life—this is usually a sign that they’re hiding their true identity. There’s also online resources like Google search, reverse image search sites and background check services that can help you determine if they are who they say they are.

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Knowing these common warning signs of a catfish can help, but catfishers can be quite the expert con artists. They use tactics like lovebombing and gaslighting that make it difficult for victims to see the reality of the situation.

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When in doubt, we recommend using caution and if you ever feel like you are in immediate danger, call 911.

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