Hey there, Stas Borukhoff here, today we are going to discuss the 2 key reasons people are fake on social media. Social media has provided an easy way to create profiles and control how we are perceived. This creates the problem of fake social, because who people portray themselves as online and what they are really like tend to be two different things. For some people this is simply a chance to embellish themselves, while others will use this ability to manufacture false profiles. Last year Facebook admitted there may be around 270 million fake or duplicate profiles. Lets go over the 2 key reasons people create less than accurate profiles.
1 – They Are Scamming
Scammers have unlimited ability to create fake social profiles for many purposes. There are so many scams online both internationally and even on specific platforms. Scammers each have their own motives, but the methods are similar. They create fake profiles by taking photos from the internet or from other users and even copy people’s bios. By doing this they look legitimate because the people they are copying are actually real people.
The first goal of a scammer is to appear real and credible. We tend to see red flags when something doesn’t look legit, but it is getting harder and harder to tell the difference between a fake profile and a real one. This problem of fake social is worsened when you are on sites like Linkedin, or sites where you are hiring people. It is so easy to create a website and a few social profiles claiming how long you have been in business and all your areas of expertise. People can literally build an entire digital presence within a day. Once they have that, they appear to be legit even with a little checking.
The second thing they do is target people to scam. Sometimes this is done with email, DMs, or even calls. Be careful when hiring someone or spending money with someone who found you. As a general good practice, even if you need a service, you should do your research and then make your choices. Businesses often fall prey to fake social scammers who reached out to them first so they make decisions with little to no information. As I wrote in my post about the power of making informed decisions, you want to think and slow down when making any decisions that could cost you valuable time and money.
2 – They are Aspirational
The second reason people put fake social information in their profiles or exaggerate is they aspire to be the person they are portraying in their profiles. An example is when people put a younger picture of themselves in their profile. When you meet them you may realize they are much older than their profile picture. They are taking the best picture of themselves and using it because it is the most flattering. This is how they want to remember themselves so they see nothing wrong with it.
All is not fair in love and war. The fact is many people have been catfished by people who leave information to get attention only to think they can meet the person and get the relationship they formed with the fake profile to transfer to them. This delusion happens because the person thought they were talking to the profile, but they were actually talking to the real person behind the fake profile. That person who is now getting the attention of the fake profile is only encouraged to enjoy the benefits and at some point may forget they were not for them. This is why some people are as shocked by the negative reaction as the person who has been fooled.
This type of exaggeration is not just because of everything being digital. People have lied on resumes to get jobs that they later were found out to be not skilled enough to do. Now that the online space is a place to hire people and companies, this problem has only gotten worse. There is a difference between optimizing a resume and flat out lying. This often goes unnoticed because the employer simply fires them and assumes they just weren’t as skilled as they needed without attributing it to the fact they may have just lied on their resume. Fake social costs companies millions, and for startups and small businesses the cost matters even more.
Aspirational misinformation may not always be with ill intent. The fact is social media has made everyone think that they need more likes, followers, and shares to keep up with rest of the people. Big data is what drives most social and communication platforms and it has trained people to want a good online presence. The desire for this may push many people into creating the best possible profile and that means stretching things too far for some people.The whole thing disregards the impact on others and only focuses on the selfish needs and wants of the individual. It is a real issue in our digital society and one that has to be addressed.
The Value of Being You
I created MobiLine app to help people be more authentic. The video profiles are a strategy to combat fake social profiles and get people to be themselves. The world will be a better place when you aspire to be yourself. That includes all your flaws. Do you need professional equipment and lighting, no. Livestreaming has really pushed this organic and real communication but not enough. We want to go beyond broadcasting to followers to making real connections and communicating one on one with real people.
The irony is that everyone seeking attention by creating fake profiles or lying on them would probably get so much more attention if they were authentic. We are the best and most unique thing on the planet. People are what makes this world amazing. When you stop trying to be something you are not, you can start being who you are meant to be. Fake social is a big problem and the solution is keeping things real.
I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic. Have you found fake profiles or been catfished? How do you think this applies in the business world? What role does video play in authenticity? Leave your thought in the comments and share this post if you found it valuable. Thanks!