Catfishing and The Pain It Manifests

Anybody who has dated online has run into this issue someone pretending to be someone they aren’t.  It’s a fact of life.

The problem is what would motivate an individual to use someone else’s photo for the purpose of defrauding, scamming, or just to perpetrate a deception.

The sad part is there are a lot of nice people that are lonely and really looking for a human connection that get taken advantage of by unscrupulous individuals who’s primary purpose is to take advantage of their loneliness to either manipulate, or steal from them.

Furthermore, this behavior is far more prevalent than one might assume at first glance.  Just like other scams, they are just laying in, waiting for the next innocent soul to passby to use for their own nefarious purposes, and nine times out of ten, it is for monetary gain.

The real victims are people who may be introverted and use social media as their only real link to the outside world and as a result of experiencing this kind of abuse may pull away further believing that they can trust no one from such a negative encounter.

And in extreme circumstances turn to substance abuse, other self harm or even suicide as a last resort for pain they can’t rid themselves of in any other fashion.

In this day of instant communication, the practice of catfishing is a cancer in society.  It reflects the worst side of the human condition. 

It presents the very worst of the narcissistic control that criminals exhibit toward the general population, seeing them as a resource to be tapped to satiate their own needs at the expense of the rest of the world.

The emotional , financial, and societal damage caused by this practice in the final assessment is incalculable due to the fact that we don’t have a way to gather reliable data regarding this phenomenon.

Conclusion:  We as a society must understand we are all responsible for ourselves.   We can’t rely on others for our emotional well-being. 

Further, we must be more proactive to verify those we allow close to us, and while loneliness can be a powerful motivator to override our natural protective instincts.

It’s crucial that we do not allow a lack of connection to override our critical thinking and our common sense.   Because it’s better to be alone and secure in yourself.  Then, to be a victim to someone else who only has their own self-serving goals in mind and to them, you don’t matter at all.