Catfishing
[8][10] The 2013 court case Zimmerman v. Board of Trustees of Ball State University saw the first legal use of the term catfishing, with the judge using the Urban Dictionary definition.
[14] An associate editor at Merriam-Webster noted that the word was "such a sensation from the moment that it came on the scene," attributing its popularity to both Schulman's documentary and the Manti Te'o story.
[15] Catfishing is often employed on dating websites, social media, and email[16] by perpetrators to disassociate from their real-life identities and shield themselves from moral obligations or responsibilities.
[18] Typically, the catfish uses someone else's photos and personal details to make themselves appear genuine, while the individual whose identity is being exploited is unaware that their information is being used.
[19] In certain cases, catfishing is used as a means for individuals to explore and express their gender and sexual identity, particularly in online environments conducive to anonymity.
Sexual predators utilize catfishing to gain the trust of minors and/or other vulnerable people to acquire sensitive information and illicit photographs.
After coercing Kozakiewicz into his vehicle, Tyree drove her to his home where he shackled her and held her captive, livestreaming her rape and torture from his basement dungeon.
A Florida viewer submitted an anonymous tip to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) after recognizing Kozakiewicz from news stories and a National Center for Missing & Exploited Children flyer.
Investigation by Arkansas law enforcement and the FBI led to the discovery of the bodies of Woody and Fuller in a rented minivan inside a Guardsmart Storage facility in Conway.
On October 16, Drew began sending hateful messages to Meier over Myspace and AOL Instant Messenger, the last of which reading "the world would be a better place without you."
[33][34] In 2006, 14-year-old Carly Ryan of South Australia began an online relationship with a supposed American-Australian teen, Brandon Kane, who was actually 50-year-old serial pedophile Garry Francis Newman.
[42] On January 6, 2013, Deadspin published an article alleging that Kekua did not exist, pointing to an individual named Ronaiah Tuiasosopo as the perpetrator of a hoax relationship.
"[45][46][47] Te'o became a popular target of jokes and insults after the story broke, with Dan Wetzel claiming "he lost his confidence, his swagger, even his interest in meeting and talking with people in public.
[51] In June 2021, the first successful civil claim relating to a catfishing scam in the common law world (Kirat Assi v. Simran Kaur Bhogal) was won in the United Kingdom.
Assi, a British radio presenter discovered she was the victim of a nine-year catfishing campaign perpetrated by her younger cousin Bhogal, a former Barclays investment banker.
