Should " cat fishing " be made illegal?

[Bubbles]

I'd never heard of it before, I'm not sure what the ramifications would be,  to make it illegal.

It's wrong.... but.... 

Should 'catfishing' be made illegal?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39078201

Perhaps dating companies should only accept people who can prove they are single, but that's not always easy.

Not everyone is divorced or widowed.

Isn't it a bit like making adultery illegal again, it's wrong, deception is often involved.....

If adultery isn't illegal, should they make cat fishing illegal?

Married men pretending to be single or that they are leaving their wife for the mistress, have been around for years.

Should that also be illegal?

People have pretended to be someone else long before we had an internet.

What do you think?

[floo]

I had never come across the term 'cat fishing' before. Pretending to be somebody you are not should be illegal if you are intending to gull someone into being interested in you in a sexual way.

[Rhiannon]

Of course catfishing should be illegal. It's a form of online grooming and it makes no difference that most victims are adults.

[Robbie]

Agree with you and Floo. It is cruel in the extreme.
However doubt the police have the resources to prosecute unless a party is actually abused. We must accept that or else be prepared to pay more tax to increase police funding.

[Nearly Sane]

"Officer, I want to report a crime'


"What crime is that, sir?"


"I met a woman and we got chatting, and things went well so we found a room to canoodle in, and then she took off her spanx, and gel filled bra, and false eyelashes. I felt betrayed, officer!"

"Two words, sir, caveat shagger!"

[jeremyp]

I'd never heard of it before

You've never heard the term or you've never head of people on dating sites putting false information in their profile? I've heard of the latter, but didn't know it had a name other than fraud.

[Robbie]

I had not previously heard of the term but one definition in online dictionary is that described in opening post. It is not anything new but more commonly done with use of internet than in past.

[Humph Warden Bennett]

Avoid West African widows needing a bank account, Russian aerobics instructors wanting assistance with air fare, Afghan veterans down on their luck, Filipina mothers with sick kids, and Ugandan wanna be Ronaldo's wanting money for football boots.

The rest are usually ok. Remember if they really like you they won't ask for money

[Rhiannon]

You've never heard the term or you've never head of people on dating sites putting false information in their profile? I've heard of the latter, but didn't know it had a name other than fraud.

I think that as far as the law is concerned it's only fraud if you use it for financial gain. Catfishing very often isn't for financial gain and is more about creating a fantasy relationship that one person believes to be real.