9 Signs of Catfish on Tinder and How to Avoid Them

Attention! Get ready for a wild ride as I share a cautionary tale about a man's worst nightmare: losing his hard-earned money to a woman who pretends to want a serious relationship.

Let me introduce you to my friend, Imanu, who fell victim to the most deceitful catfishing scheme you can imagine. It's a shocking story you won't want to miss!

Tinder, has a majority of male users, making it a breeding ground for manipulation. With fierce competition among men for the limited number of women on the app, both genders have learned to exploit the situation.

Imanu's desperation for love led him to Tinder, and it seemed like a promising solution. However, little did he know that it would cost him his precious Benjamins.

I don't want you to experience a similar nightmare, so buckle up and join me on this extraordinary journey.

We're about to explore a world of twists and turns that will leave you stunned. Are you ready?

What is a catfish on Tinder? Understanding the basics

Catfishing stands for the particular activity of deception in which one party pretends to be a particular persona to gain something specific from the other party.

A catfish is a scenario whereby one of the parties in the relationship ends up losing money or other benefits to the schemes of the other party. 

It is not just money but also property. Mostly though, it is money. It is a terrible prank that uses fake profiles to cheat guys into seemingly meaningful relationships that lead nowhere.

We recommend using the Socialcatfish for checking on someone as catfish to be on the safe side. It is more accurate and gets faster results.

Why is it called a Catfish?

This phenomenon of begging for money, asking for financial favors, and having to prove that you love someone by giving them money or other benefits is called a catfish because a liar presents themselves as needy or doing something important that requires your attention.

When my friend Imanu got catfished, the woman was seemingly setting up a business in Omsk and needed some amount of money.

Yes, she was European, from Ukraine but she wasn’t setting up any business.

It is called a catfish when a prank is set out to swindle a party of cash or anything else to benefit the one catfishing. More women than men catfish, especially on Tinder.

Tinder has many Catfish profiles

There are so many fake profiles on Tinder trying to solicit money and other benefits through various means.

An obvious Tinder catfish profile of Natile who is a man and only 18.

These means are:

• There are those profiles that promise to offer you messages only if you pay for them.
• Some offer to sell you sexy videos and voice recordings. 
• Some seem to be impatiently waiting for your text.

On Tinder, there are those slay queens, who are extremely hot and all they want is a paid booty call.

Sometimes when you make a match with a user, they want you to send them lunch money first before you meet face-to-face.

My friend Imanu, his European girlfriend was posing as a tourist in Nairobi looking for investment opportunities.

That she had been setting up business in Omsk and wanted to partner with Kenyan investors, like my well-off buddy Imanu.

Ways to Know if it is a Catfish on Tinder:

Catfish behavior is fortunately in some instances easy to spot.

In this article, you shall meet up with seven signs. However, your intuition should help a lot in guiding you while on Tinder.

You can always reverse an image search to find a catfish.

The signs are so obvious such as the ones that I will mention here — 7 signs of catfish on Tinder:

1. There are hardly any photos of the real person

The major reason why these catfishers are reluctant to send you any other photos is that they are not the person they’re impersonating.

Whatever photos that you saw on their profiles, usually one or two is all that they have.

When you ask for their photos they snob you or quickly change the subject of discussion. Others tend to get pissed off at you.

If you look closely you may notice inconsistencies in their photos.

If you are in luck, the usernames that they have could be getting used on other social media platforms.

You can try Tinder Search to identify the real owners of the profiles.

Protect yourself from Tinder catfishes and stay safe online with SocialCatfish! Discover the truth behind any online identity and avoid falling for deceitful tricks. Take control of your online dating experience today.
Click here to visit SocialCatfish and stay protected!

2. Celebrity or models’ photos are in use a lot

Real-life celebrities use online dating sites, that’s no surprise, they’re people too.

Sharon Stone was temporarily banned from Bumble. Catfishers take advantage of celebrity photos.

A good example is Sharon Stone on Bumble, where her account was banned by Bumble.

Such incidents have allowed catfishers to use fake celebrity accounts to catfish.

They have also played around with models’ photos and created fake snaps (from the Snapchat cloning app) to fool Tinder users.

Here is the part where I have to remind you “If it is too good to be true, it most probably is”.

Why would Rihanna be looking for love on Tinder when she can get almost any man that she wants? To add on top of that, why would she impatiently text you?

3. You must first send them some lunch money before they meet you in person

I do not know why but Imanu did this with his European girlfriend.

When they first met on Tinder, she was already in Nairobi City, Kenya but she did not want to meet him before he sent her something for lunch.

She was extremely attractive and Imanu, typical of most men, complied. 

It seemed so harmless to Imanu that even when they eventually met, he never allowed them to part without him paying for her fare back home.

This trend continued for some time in their building relationship.

Imanu is pretty well off therefore, a few Benjamins did not seem like much to him. 

No wonder catfishers are ecstatic when they find a rich person.

He or she may not care that they are being swindled until it is either late or something seems off.

4. Their messages take you to some external links or email addresses

Would you believe it, Imanu ended up being on three different sites that his European girlfriend was a part of, allegedly.

Porn site redirection happens a lot from catfishers. They were a mixture of porn sites and online betting sites. 

The explanation that she gave was that she was a shareholder on these sites and would have appreciated it if Imanu supported her.

Being as sizzling hot as she was, Imanu agreed.

Eventually, he would discover that they were attempts to get his credit card information.

They needed to access his pin and CSV number to swindle him.

That is exactly why catfishers on Tinder send you external links.

They want you to sign up for some service using your credit card to steal from you.

You can protect yourself from using real details on Tinder and any other redirected site.

Trying Tinder Without a Phone Number, or simply don’t share personal information with people who require it on Tinder.

You do not have to use your real details while on Tinder.

5. You cannot meet them in person as they give excuses all the time

At least Imanu met his former European catfish.

However, most of these fake profiles do not want to meet you face-to-face.

There are three major reasons for this:

• They are not who you saw in the photos.
• They have very low self-esteem.
• They do not want a relationship.

They are the people who ghost you once they get what they want from you. A meaningful relationship with them is a waste of time.

They do not think that they are capable of having a meaningful relationship. Also, they are full of excuses as to why you cannot meet.

6. They obviously ask you for cash

Before Imanu and his European girlfriend ever met, she asked him for cash.

Gold digging is a big red flag a catfisher gives off.

When they met in person, she asked him for even more cash.

It was an interesting case. A local man handed a lot of money to an international person. We were all shocked!

It all seemed so innocent to him as she was, after all, a very sophisticated businesswoman.

Imanu never wanted to see beyond that pretty face and so he got catfished and easily.

The common behavior of most catfishers is asking for cash!

They do it a lot. They do it in three major ways:

• They play on your sympathy by talking about family problems. 
• They promise you good sex. 
• They play on your naivety and generosity. 

Being kind is good but it’s also important to protect yourself from these catfishers. I.e. Know who you’re being kind to.

They may justify ghosting you by cushioning you to not feeling guilty. 

7. They refuse to send you pictures

This is because sending you a picture would put their created persona in danger: you might find out who they are. Their photos would lack consistency and you would notice that.

A Tinder profile without a picture.

There is another major reason why they do not want to send you pictures. That is, they want to keep their identities a secret.

Others plan to ghost you as soon as they get your money. However, you can know why your Tinder Match Disappeared.

Not sending you pictures is also a way to hide their crime. They know that catfishing is stealing. Stealing is a crime. 

They do this to make sure that you would not be able to report to the police anything at all. This is why it usually is hard to make a case against catfishers. 

Admittedly and quite weirdly, Imanu’s European woman seemed a bit different to him. She did not have blonde but red hair. She was not as short but a bit taller than him.

In other words, she lied about her identity, and her appearance, making her a catfisher.

8. They won’t talk to you on the phone

A phone call can expose a catfish quite openly. Whether they’re a gender pretending to be another one, a person impersonating another one, or simply, a person with cruel intentions.

They know their tone of voice will betray them, so they can’t take that risk.

However, there are cases in which they do accept having a phone call and proceed to lie to you. In those cases, they’ll be ok with it as long as you don’t ask for a video call.

9. They’re impatient for some reason

A catfisher is patient to a particular limit. They can’t afford to lose time to know more about you.

One of the signs of a catfish is their impatience when it comes to answers, ‘meeting up’, giving them money, or ‘getting to know you’ parts of communication.

They can often seem arrogant due to their over-the-top confidence, and their disinterest when you tell them something about yourself.

How to avoid getting catfished on Tinder?

You are in luck. You can prevent yourself from being a victim of catfish on Tinder or anywhere else in the deep dark waters of online dating. Take note of all the 7 points mentioned here and trust your gut when you get suspicious.

Here’s how to avoid being catfished:

1. Search for their name/picture on the internet.

Do image searches and name searches on other social media like Facebook and Twitter.

By doing this, you’ll have a better understanding of whether they’re being someone they’re not or they’re who they claim to be for realsies.

Their profiles should look like a normal person’s profile, not like someone who just opened a profile and left it there unused for years.

2. Use third-party apps/sites to help you find out more about the person.

Third-party sites like SocialCatfish can help you know better and know more about the person you’re texting with on Tinder.

All it takes is their name, and the name of the place they live in, and you’ll be good to go.

3. Pay attention to how attentive they are towards you.

See if they pay attention to your stories, your mood, and yourself.

If they don’t care much to know about you or change topics whenever you start sharing something of your own, then start taking notes.

4. Ask for a phone call.

If they don’t accept, take it as a sign. If they accept though, start taking notes.

Pay attention to their tone of voice, the way they talk, and the way they listen. You can tell when they’re hesitant to answer a particular question, or even when they’re lying.

If you catch them lying multiple times (because a liar can barely keep up with their lies), then take it as a red flag, as one of the signs of being catfished on Tinder.

5. Insist on meeting face-to-face to know the real person. Meet somewhere in public at first.

Politely ask them for a date, or a simple hang out if they’re looking to avoid labels. You must meet in public. Keep it safe.

6. Keep an eye on their profile.

You can share their Tinder profile with other people, or simply keep the URL somewhere on your phone to keep track of a catfish's profile.

If you moved the conversation to other platforms, make sure you keep an eye on their profile to see if they changed their persona this time.

7. Use Tinder’s Safety Center.

In this feature, you’ll have guides, tools, and resources to help you out with your situation.

It includes tools such as the panic button, emergency assistance, and other very helpful ones in case things go wrong with the person you’re communicating with.

You have it available on your Tinder app.

Tinder > Profile Icon > Safety.

8. Look for the blue check on their Tinder profile.

The blue check appears on profiles that are verified. This means the person has gone through a set of safety photo ID verification processes for it to appear on their profile.

9. The last one, which I put separately, is to know what a Good Tinder Bio looks like.

Remember to always be careful when dating online as many fake profiles exist. 

Important note: Be wary of people who ask for favors before they meet you in person.

How Do Tinder Users Catfish?

There are some remarkable ways through which Tinder users catfish other users.

1. They automate Tinder bots.

These send users-generated replies as if machines were talking to them. 

They tend to send users to external sites such as porn sites. 

On these sites, users have to sign up for services using their credit cards. 

Hackers then can steal their money.

2. They use the fake snap feature on Snapchat. 

The fake stories app for cloning Snapchat is a sure way to create a fake Snapchat using someone else’s true Snapchat.

With that being said, someone could even clone the story of a model or a celebrity.

3. They give you a lot of attention until it is weird.

They may look or seem too good for you. They keep on praising your looks and stuff in your photos.

Eventually, they ask you to send them cash first before you meet up.

4. They make sure they look and say everything you dreamt of.

Again, it’s too good to be a true vibe. They use someone else’s looks and success to convince you into things that benefit them in one way or another.

An Expert’s Advice: What to Do if Catfished?

What you should do if at all you get catfished. If ever you have been a victim of a catfish and just realized it, do not panic.

The steps to follow if you’ve been catfished:

• Make sure to save the money that you have left. You may still be able to stand well on your feet.
• If she or he made you broke, just cut ties with them and gradually pick yourself back up.
• Do not be naïve. We all have problems. You too have problems; do not sympathize so much with their situations.
• Learn a lesson from your experience and try to not repeat the mistakes.
• Warn others around you so that you protect them from your experience.
• Don’t judge yourself. Move on and be cautious next time you encounter someone else online.

It is not always easy to spot a catfish. Others hide so well and you realize much later on.

Do not be too hard on yourself. Get smarter every day and you will be just fine.

We learn from experience.

Conclusion – Signs of catfish on Tinder

Spotting a fake profile and a catfish on Tinder is not always easy. However, there are tell-tale signs such as the many we have looked at. 

Let me remind you, “They have no profile photos”. 

Knowing that you are being catfished is very important before it is too late.

It exposes them for who they are and that way, you can make Tinder a better online dating site.

Always be yourself and do not expect too much. Live within your means and work hard to be successful. 

By the way, my friend Imanu is no longer with the European catfish. 

As always, I wish you all the best while you use Tinder.

Best of luck,

Liam.