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Life

02nd Jul 2017

Have you heard of ‘kittenfishing’? You may want to look out for it

On the dating scene? Watch for this.

Laura Holland

On the dating scene? Watch for this.

We’ve all presumably heard of catfishing, right? It’s where someone uses someone else’s photo for their online social media or dating profiles.

Well, there is a new term to describe a very similar scenario. It’s called ‘kittenfishing’ and is similar to catfishing except the person still uses their own picture.

The deception comes when they use a very old or heavily filtered photograph to appear to be something they’re not. Kittenfishers also exaggerate aspects of their profile, from their age, interests, achievements to their looks.

Sometimes it can be intentional and other times it can be an innocent mistake. Take an old photo, for example. You genuinely may think that you still look the same but, to someone else, you could look completely different.

Love Coach Nikki Leigh told Bustle:

“As if catfishing wasn’t bad enough, people who are actually trying to find dates or love through online dating sites have to be concerned about people kittenfishing them. We have to wonder if people think this is harmless or if people do it intentionally. Maybe they see it like a little white lie.

They may figure they’ll shave a few (or more) years off their age to make themselves seem more attractive to grab a person’s attention. Or they may post a picture when they were thinner, so they can get more attention in the beginning. It’s sad they don’t realize that they aren’t doing themselves any favors and they are actually hurting their own chances if they are really looking for a date or love and they are hurting other people.”

Something to look out for next time you strike up a conversation with someone online.

Topics:

Dating,Life