TikTok is a popular social media platform where users can create, watch, and share videos on mobile devices. Also, it serves as a lively marketplace and a way for individuals to connect with new friends. But that’s not 100% safe without additional caution. So if you have some doubts about the person behind a social account, this tutorial will help you. Here we have some tips for you to identify if someone is real on TikTok.

Method 1: Check their accounts and posts

Just had a pleasant chat with someone you met on TikTok and want to go further? Not so fast. Maybe take a look at their profile and posts first to check if they are real. It’s suspicious if their TikTok pages have these signs:

• Presenting a too-perfect life
  So that they can lure new targets into communicating with them and building trust.
• Excessively promoting products
  Be cautious if the TikTok account excessively promotes products, services, or suspicious links.
• Having very similar comments under their posts
  It could indicate the use of fake followers or engagement bots to create a false impression of popularity.
• Posting revealing contents
  That might be a way to attract attention and increase engagement.
• Putting suspicious links in their bio
  Phishing links can direct people to fake websites designed to collect personal information.
  

If you notice these signs from the person’s TikTok account, chances are they fabricated this profile to lure you into buying products or even scamming. In that case, you might need to suspend your communication to avoid any possible loss.

Method 2: Reverse Search the image

One option to check the people’s credibility is to reverse search the pictures sent over. Scammers may steal videos and pictures from other users or sources and re-upload them as their own. As this user has shared, a reverse image lookup helped them find out that the pictures sent over were stolen from others¹. A reverse image lookup can tell you where the pictures are shown on the Internet, helping you to identify the original source.

1. Social Catfish

Starting from a dating investigation service, Social Catfish is now a leading social media search platform that offers the reverse image lookup feature. Its reports can show you all the web pages that are with the same or similar pictures as the one searched. You can collect one picture from the person’s TikTok account that shows a clear face, or their profile picture, and give it a try.

1. Go to Social Catfish.
2. Click Browse and upload image here to upload the picture and click SEARCH.
   
3. Social Catfish will use its search algorithms to analyze the picture and compare it against a vast database of indexed images. This database can include images from websites, social media platforms, and other sources across the internet.
4. Once done, it’ll generate a report that may include visually similar images, web pages where the image appears, and other information. You can explore the sources of the matched images to gather more information and verify the identity of the TikTok user.
   

2. Google Image

If you prefer a free tool, you can also try Google reverse image search. Here is how to use it:

1. Go to Google Image.
2. Click the camera icon near the search box.
   
3. Click to paste the URL of the image or upload the picture from your computer. Once the uploading is done, click Search by image.
   

See if Google returns any similar photos. Click each one of them and you’ll see their origins, where you may gather more information about the TikTok user. Other free alternatives include Bing Image, TinEye, and Yandex.

Method 3: Lookup the username

The more information you have, the higher the possibility that you will identify if this someone is real on TikTok. To do that, you may use some social media search tools for a try. Because they have large databases containing information from multiple sources that allow you to find out more about the person behind the social account. Username is a good start:

1. BeenVerified

BeenVerified is a powerful people search engine. It has access to a wide range of public data sources including social media platforms. Simply enter a username, and you’ll get a report consisting of available information linked to the username, like the social media accounts, the possible owner’s name, addresses, and contact info.

1. Go to the BeenVerified Username Search page.
2. Enter the username and click SEARCH.
   
3. Wait as BeenVerified finishes the search process. Once done, it’ll generate a report.
4. On the report page, there is a navigation bar on the left to help you easily access the information that you’re interested in. For example, the Potential Owners section.
   
5. Click on the Search person button to get more available information linked to the username, which may include the possible username owner’s name, contact info, and social media page, which may help you verify the identity of the TikTok user.

What do we like about BeenVerified?
BeenVerified is a subscription-based service, and you’ll need to purchase a membership plan to view the report. But during one subscription, you can access all of its search features like username, email address, and address lookups.

2. Spokeo

Spokeo is another notable people search tool that also provides a username search service. By searching for a username, you could get detailed information related to the person, like their phone numbers, photos, address history, and more.

1. Go to the Spokeo Username Search page.
2. Enter the username and click SEARCH NOW.
   
3. Wait for Spokeo to look through its data sources. Once finished, it will bring you a potential owner’s name, photos, and profiles on 120+ social platforms. Note that Spokeo is also a paid service.
   

You may also want to know:

1. What are the common signs that a TikTok user is up to something?

As you chat with someone on TikTok or any social platform, be careful what you are talking about. Because you definitely don’t want any money loss and privacy leakage. To make sure you are communicating in a safe environment, be alarmed when they:

• Mention money
  Ask about your income or flaunt theirs.
• Send you weird links
  Which might be used to steal information or install malicious software on your devices.
• Push things too hard
  Try to quickly get you emotionally invested.
• Constantly avoid your video call requests
  Maybe they have something to hide.
• Have incoherent conversations with you
  It’s hard to remember what you’ve talked about when they need to chat with many other people.

2. Who are vulnerable to TikTok scams?

Seniors are extra vulnerable to social media scams, cyberattacks, fraud, and even identity theft. As we browsed through online forums where people share their experience of being scammed, we noticed that stories of elderly persons falling prey to frauds never end. A user shared that their mother was tricked into believing that she was talking to a person posing as a celebrity on TikTok². Another person reported that their neighbor met a “overseas boyfriend” on TikTok and got involved into a potential money laundry³.

Therefore, we advise you to monitor the elderly members of your family as they engage in social media and other online platforms. That can help prevent any potential risks.

3. How to report scams to TikTok?

Any of these signs might suggest the possibility that they are going after your money or personal information. Finding someone special on TikTok is great, but you can never be too cautious. If you consider any account suspicious, you can report it to TikTok.

On your mobile devices:

1. Go to the person’s profile.
2. Tap the three-dot icon on the top right and select Report.
   
3. Follow the instructions provided.

On your computer:

To report suspicious activities on your computer, simply navigate to the official TikTok website and log in to your account. Then use the search functions on TikTok to find the content or account that you want to report. Click the … icon beside their username and select Report. 

Follow the on-screen instructions and provide further details. You can also refer to TikTok’s page about scams for more information.

If you’re constantly receiving spam comments containing suspicious links below your posts, you may turn on the Filter keywords setting to block them. Go to Settings and privacy – Privacy – Comments, and enter the keywords to filter. According to some users online, by setting [.com] as a filter word, it can help block most of these comments⁴.

We hope that you find this post helpful. If you have anything to share, don’t hesitate to tell us. Stay safe!

1. Forum Index [Seeley]. (2023, November 2). Hi I got a message from this guy who is goin by captain flood on tiktok…sent me a message… [Comment on the online forum post George Ryan, george58ryan@gmail.com (The Flood tribe)]. Romancescam. https://www.romancescam.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=123023&start=45 ↩︎
2. r/Scams [g0mmmme]. (2023, December 11). My mom is being romance scammed by someone posing as Daryl Hall from Hall and Oates. [Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/comments/18f848o/my_mom_is_being_romance_scammed_by_someone_posing/ ↩︎
3. r/Scams [itsnothear]. (2022, November 28). I think my neighbor is being scammed into money laundering. [Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/comments/z6xfuh/i_think_my_neighbor_is_being_scammed_into_money/ ↩︎
4. r/Tiktokhelp [jkitsj]. (2023, November 29). you can go to settings and filter comments by keyword. I had this problem and blocked “.com”. Actually i think… [Comment on the online forum post So many scam comments]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/Tiktokhelp/comments/186gamh/so_many_scam_comments/ ↩︎