Since the Covid-19 pandemic and the social-distancing it’s entailed, much of the dating scene has gone online. However, this has also led to more incidents of catfishing through social media platforms, online dating apps, and other chat networks. In 2020, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported losses to catfishing reached a record $304 million, up 50% from 2019, and a four-fold increase since 2016. For each victim, that meant an average dollar loss of $2,500.
Catfishing is described as a deceptive activity in which a person creates a fictional persona or fake identity on a social networking service in order to target a specific victim either for financial gain, revenge, curiosity, boredom, or some other self-serving motivation. The term derived from a 2010 documentary about a young man named Nev Schulman, being filmed by his brother and friend, co-directors Ariel and Henry, as he builds a romantic relationship through Facebook with whom he believes to be a 19-old woman named Megan. Upon suspicion, Nev and his crew travel from New York City to rural Michigan, where they eventually discover that Megan does not exist. Instead, the men learn that Megan was a false persona fabricated by Angela, a 40-year-old housewife who used photos of a Washington State model named Aimee Gonzales to “catfish” Nev.
“They used to tank cod from Alaska all the way to China,” he says, mixing up the geography. “By the time the codfish reached China, the flesh was mush and tasteless. So this guy came up with the idea that if you put these cods in these big vats, put some catfish in with them and the catfish will keep the cod agile. And there are those people who are catfish in life. They keep you on your toes. They keep you guessing, they keep you thinking, they keep you fresh.”
Catfish
Angela’s husband, Vince, adopted the term “catfish” to describe what Angela did, illustrating a fishing tactic that many believe came from a book written by evangelical pastor Charles Swindoll. During an interview with Wired Magazine, Nev also points to Genesis as one of the first examples of catfishing in early history, where Jacob obtains his brother Esau’s birthright by deceiving his bling father into believing he was Esau instead.
The documentary would eventually lead to the creation of Catfish: The TV Show, a renowned MTV reality-based television series. Later, the television show became redacted into a podcast.
So what is actually being done about catfishing? Few states have created legislation that specifically targets such an action. However, Oklahoma is the only state that outlaws using another’s picture to become someone new, thus being the most stringent on catfishing. Internet and data privacy laws are already drafted and construed very broadly, in anticipation of future changes in technological innovation. Moreover, the impersonation of another person online is not illegal by itself. However, the impersonator could be liable for actions, such as intellectual property infringement (such as the unauthorized use and display of another’s copyrighted photos or videos), defamation, impersonation for the use of another’s likeness, fraud, sexual violations with minors or other criminal activity.
While catfishing can have devastating emotional and psychological impacts on its victims, it has also been used to protect minors and in capturing sexual predators. However, with the rise of deepfake technology, balancing the benefits and malefactors of catfishing will become more of an arduous task.
Uzziah Project 