Catfishing
- “how to tell if someone is catfishing me”
- “the word for a fake online identity”
- “someone used fake photos to date me”
- “where does the word catfishing come from”
:: COMPARE ::
CatfishingvsKittenfishing
The short answer
A matter of degree with a real line between them. A kittenfisher is a genuine person using flattering, out-of-date photos — they'll show up. A catfisher has invented an identity, often with someone else's pictures, and typically avoids ever meeting. Impersonation on its own isn't a crime everywhere; what catfishing is usually used for — fraud, extortion — is.
Side by side
| Aspect | Catfishing | Kittenfishing |
|---|---|---|
| The person | Doesn't exist as shown | Real, just flattered |
| The photos | Often someone else's | Theirs, older |
| Will they meet? | Avoids it | Yes |
| Legally | Often fraud | Rarely criminal in itself |
| Shows up IRL? | Avoids it | Yes |
| Severity | Full deception | Mild embellishment |
Which one you meant
Readers who land here meaning Catfishing rather than Kittenfishing are usually searching for phrases like “how to tell if someone is catfishing me”, “the word for a fake online identity”, “someone used fake photos to date me”.
Kittenfishing
- “slightly lying on a dating profile”
- “their photos looked nothing like they do in person”
- “the word for exaggerating yourself on a dating app”
- “when someone's profile is a flattering version of the truth”
Which came first
Catfishing. 2010 — The documentary Catfish gives the deception sense its name; the film's closing anecdote about a catfish shipped among cod supplies the metaphor.
- 2010CatfishingThe documentary Catfish gives the deception sense its name; the film's closing anecdote about a catfish shipped among cod supplies the metaphor.
- 2017KittenfishingThe dating app Hinge coins the term in a June 21 article for the milder-than-catfishing deception.
Where the confusion comes from
“Kittenfishing and catfishing are basically the same.”
Kittenfishing embellishes a real person who does show up in person; catfishing invents a fake identity — often using someone else's photos — for a person who never truly exists as portrayed.
Read either one in full