Catfisher

I’ve done a lot of online dating and I’ve had catfishers hit on me before, but usually it’s obvious.

The latest in a long line of dirty dating tactics to emerge is “wokefishing,” a term coined by writer Serena Smith. “People masquerade as holding progressive political views to ensnare potential partners,” Smith told Vice. Wokefishermen can be thought of like catfishers — those who use fake online personas to defraud victims — but only for sex instead of money.

Catfishers lie and mislead people in their search for intimate and personal relationships through text, chat rooms, email, instant messaging, and other apps.

‘Lots of really smart people get taken in by catfishers.’ ‘Catfishers? Is that what you think is happening?’ ‘I don’t know. I think it’s possible.’ ‘You watch too much internet,’ Roly scoffed and they walked on in silence.