Before you fall too hard for someone you’ve met online, “Catfish” hosts Nev Schulman and Max Joseph suggest looking for these warning signs that may indicate your Internet crush is not who they say they are:
1. Check out how many Facebook friends the person has. “If they have 100 friends or less, that’s generally a red flag,” Joseph says.
2. See if their friends are tagged in Facebook photos. Joseph says that, in many of the fake profiles they come across, only the person whose profile it is will be tagged in photos with groups of friends.
3. Don’t get dragged into personal drama before you’ve even met a person. “If this person you’re communicating with online but have never met or even know to exist, is drawing you into their very dramatic, complex life, is this a relationship you want to be engaged in, even if they are real?” Schulman asks.
4. Look for clues in Facebook wall posts or tweets. Joseph suggests looking for posts that indicate physical relationships with other people. If posts only indicate talking on the phone or online, as opposed to referencing meeting on a certain date and at a location, that should raise suspicion.
5. Be wary of models. On “Catfish,” many people get duped because they want to believe they are dating a model.