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How to Spot Fake Hinge Profiles | Who’s Behind It

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How to Spot Fake Hinge Profiles | Who’s Behind It

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Has anybody run into a significant amount of scam profiles on Hinge? A Redditor inquired about this1, and it seems to be a common occurrence. If you’re one of them and wondering if you’re talking to a bot, catfisher or scammer, you’re in the right place! This post will introduce how to spot Hinge fake profiles and track down scammers on dating sites.

Signs of Hinge fake profiles

Hinge doesn’t have a verification system that would prevent fake profiles; therefore, you may need to pay attention to some signs of fakers or scammers.

  • Empty or incomplete profiles
  • Their bios are a little too perfect
  • The profile photos look like models or someone famous
  • Their messages feel like copies from somewhere
  • They want to meet right away
  • They send you random and mysterious links
  • Their story gets inconsistent
  • They want to move to other apps or websites quickly
  • They ask for gift cards, credit cards or other financial info.

In addition to apparent indicators of counterfeit Hinge profiles, employing certain tools can aid in detecting fraudulent individuals and scammers.

Why are so many fake profiles on dating apps?
  • Bots and automated accounts — Some users mentioned that accounts sending likes can be bots in a forum thread discussing the Hinge dating app2. These accounts may generate likes, send pre-written messages, and actively participate in conversations in order to persuade users to purchase a premium plan. Additionally, there are fake profiles created with the intention of luring real users and generating traffic. Some of these profiles may attempt to extract personal information or promote scams.
  • Catfishing and scamming — Individuals may create fake accounts to establish a relationship with someone under false pretenses. Their ultimate goal may involve emotional manipulation or financial gains.
  • Testing — In some cases, dating apps themselves may create fake profiles for testing or development purposes.
  • Advertising — These accounts spare no effort to promote products, services, or other websites, by redirecting users to external sites as a result.
Is it safe to use dating apps like Hinge?

Some social networks have experienced data breaches in the past few years. For example, Zoosk, another dating app, suffered a data breach in 2019, exposing the personal information of some users.
So far, there are no widely reported incidents of data breaches specifically related to Hinge. But still, you need to keep alarmed when sharing your personal information on Hinge and other platforms. Prevention tricks may involve strong passwords, Two-Factor authentication, up-to-date app versions, and more.

5 methods to spot Hinge fake profiles

Here we list 5 possible solutions below to help you spot fake Hinge profiles and find out who is behind the account.

Method 1 Run a background check

Whenever and wherever you come across an online date that can be a potential partner for you, always do a background check before sharing personal info, meeting, or even building a relationship.

TruthFinder is your go-to option in terms of thorough background checks. Just enter a name, purchase a membership plan, and view the available information in a detailed report.

What information could be included in the report?

  • Personal info
  • Jobs and education history
  • Possible family and friends
  • Social media profiles
  • Address history
  • Criminal and traffic records
  • Assets
  • And more
The above image is from a sample TruthFinder report. Actual TruthFinder reports may contain more or less information.

If details on the report run against what your date told you on Hinge, it may be a fake profile intending to scam. Or if you find unsavory information or your data has a possible criminal background, you might want to reconsider this relationship.

Method 2 Suggest video chats

If you’re doing well with someone on Hinge but they suggest moving to other apps, then you can try to suggest video chats. As user @chessimprov pointed out, “I suggest asking for video chat when these app requests come up… If they don’t want to, just say you’re not interested.”3

If the person is real and has good intentions to start a serious relationship, they won’t firmly reject your request. Don’t feel ashamed to insist on it. It’s also a protection tactic before meeting them in real life.

It’s not a rare phenomenon that some people use fake or stolen pictures from other social media accounts. If you believe you have seen the photos or the person in the picture, you should do a reverse image lookup to see where they’re coming from. A reverse image search can source all the same and similar pictures you upload, to help spot fake Hinge profiles.

Upload Image >>

This is powered by Social Catfish, a people search engine. After uploading the image, you can view on which sites this image has appeared and who posted it. Note that you’ll need to purchase a membership plan to view the report.

Image report from Social Catfish

Apart from uploading images via Social Catfish, you can also turn to Google Image Search, a powerful, robust and widespread search engine. Just browse google.com and click the camera icon to upload images and search for relevant results. If the pictures belong to celebrities or influencers, your date is definitely hiding something from you.

Method 4 Hire a search specialist

Social Catfish has been featured on CNN, Forbes, Reuters, yahoo, and other media organizations. If you’re serious about learning as much as possible about the person, and you want guaranteed results, you can pay for a Social Catfish Specialty Service. The people search experts at Social Catfish will do all the hard work for you, using the same tools that the FBI uses. And they guarantee they’ll find the person.

Chat with a specialist >>

After submitting your information, you’ll be assigned a specialist who will search your case and report findings to you. In this way, you’ll get access to in-depth databases and tools not open to the public, with results being 100% guaranteed.

Enter a Hinge username on this search page, and you’ll get a report in minutes.

The report may reveal the account user’s real identity, photo, job history, education details, traffic and criminal records, and more.

This is a subscription-based service, so you’ll need to pay for it.

How to report fake Hinge profiles?

— To report an account in the Hinge app:

  1. Open the profile of an account that you want to report, then select the three dots at the top right and tap Report.
  2. Choose a reason why you are reporting this person. Rest assured that the reporting is anonymous and permanent, and they will not see your profile.

— Report outside the Hinge app:

If you find someone impersonating you or your friends, you can write to Hinge with the following information provided:

  • The reason for the report
  • The exact name, bio, age, and photos that appear on the profile that you’re reporting (screenshots are best)
Screenshot from Hinge

Protect your privacy when dating online

Numerous instances have arisen where dating apps have been implicated in the inadvertent exposure of users’ private data to third-party applications. Consequently, this has led to the unintended disclosure of not just users’ geographical information, but also their photos and other sensitive particulars. As time moved on, concerns regarding the security of digital information have escalated.

Free Dark Web Scan >>

If the prospect of your personal data being compromised troubles you, one possible solution for safeguarding yourself and your loved ones from potential fraud and data breaches is the utilization of identity theft protection services like Aura. This service aims to provide comprehensive protection across all your devices.

  1. datingoverforty [pantyfoxx]. (2023, July 11). Has anybody run into a significant amount of scam profiles on hinge? [Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/datingoverforty/comments/14w9pu2/has_anybody_run_into_a_significant_amount_of_scam/ ↩︎
  2. Lifestyle [Some-one]. (2023, March 1). Hinge Dating App [Online forum post]. Hardwarezone. https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/hinge-dating-app.6878026/ ↩︎
  3. Relationships [chessimprov]. (2023, January 21). Online Dating – Boost working well on Hinge and Bumble [Online forum post]. City-Data. https://www.city-data.com/forum/relationships/3401549-online-dating-boost-working-well-hinge.html ↩︎

All product names, logos, brands, trademarks and registered trademarks are property of their respective owners.

exclamation-blueThere’s no guarantee you’ll find the information you’re looking for with the tools discussed in this article. They all source their information from publicly available data sources, such as county, state and federal courts, government departments, and police records, and those sources may contain incorrect or incomplete data. It’s illegal to use these tools to make decisions about employment, admission, consumer credit, insurance, tenant screening, or any other purpose that would require FCRA compliance. Read the Fair Credit Reporting Act to learn more....

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Yuki's curiosity knows no bounds when it comes to knowledge. With two years of programming under her belt, she's embarked on thrilling projects that showcase her unique blend of creativity and analytical acumen. From developing a captivating poetry website to diving into the depths of data analysis and venturing into the world of mobile app development, she became excellent at Internet research and data mining.

But her journey doesn't end in the classroom. Prior to joining Super Easy, she has honed her writing skills as a contributor at SHEIN, delved into the intricacies of marketing as a specialist for an international e-commerce company, facilitated dreams as an educational consultant for a company assisting individuals in studying abroad, and lent her IT expertise as an assistant for britishcouncil.org. This breadth of experience has enriched her perspective on the digital landscape, making her a true expert in uncovering hidden gems on the web.

Yet, Yuki's interests extend far beyond the digital realm. When she's not crafting informative content, she's often found taking refreshing dips in the pool, embarking on thrilling adventures around the globe, or immersing herself in the captivating realm of theater. These passions not only rejuvenate her spirit but also serve as a wellspring of creativity, ensuring that her writing remains vibrant, engaging, and relatable.

About this article

round-success 23 Revisions

file-success Reviewed by BeenVerified

Yuki Huang

Writer

Yuki's curiosity knows no bounds when it comes to knowledge. With two years of programming under her belt, she's embarked on thrilling projects that showcase her unique blend of creativity and analytical acumen. From developing a captivating poetry website to diving into the depths of data analysis and venturing into the world of mobile app development, she became excellent at Internet research and data mining. Bu [...]

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