Are You An Online Dater? You Might Have Been ‘Catfished’ And It Was Probably Your Fault

Online dating, eh? It’s an absolute minefield.

One second you’re furiously swiping left and right like a human windscreen wiper, the next you’re matching with the most beautiful person you’ve ever seen. Only to find out six months later that your lovely match, Stephanie, is actually the not-so-lovely Steve and you’ve just paid for his holiday.

It might seem like an extreme situation but, worryingly, this sort of thing happens a lot more often than you’d like to imagine.

According to research conducted by online security firm BullGuard, around 50 per cent of Brits suspect that they’ve probably been scammed by someone on online dating sites and apps, with 15 per cent of people claiming that they were definitely scammed.

Which is a worryingly high percentage of people, with most people playing straight into the hands (or paws? Fins? Fin-Paws?) of the Catfish, revealing an astonishing amount of information about themselves within as little as three messages.

According to BullGuard's survey, people would reveal:

Where they live: 40% of the time.

Their phone number: 32% of the time.

Their Facebook profile: 30% of the time

Disclose their salary: 25% of the time [Ed. #WhoTHeHellWouldDoThat]

Which is quite a large proportion of people. Even more bonkers is the fact that 22 per cent of people have actually sent their bank details across to someone they’ve met online. We knew love was blind, but insane? We can only assume that these same people also have a healthy email relationship with a mysterious Nigerian prince wishing to reclaim his rightful inheritance.

If you are one of these people, shake yourself right now. Go on, do it. Now stop telling people everything. 

Jeeez.

 [Via: Bulldog]

[Image: Tinder]