What Is Maskfishing? The Lockdown Dating Trend That’s Actually Quite Dangerous

‘I like seeing a man in a mask because I know he’s taking the pandemic seriously, but it is really difficult to tell if they’re actually fit or not… it’s like the new beard,’ a friend said to me last night in what is the most 2020 sentence of all time. We were discussing the rise in ‘maskfishing’: a virtual dating trend that has seen people wearing face masks in every single one of their profile pictures, and it’s more dangerous than you’d think.

According to adult camming and casual dating site Adult Friend Finder (AFF), maskfishing is becoming so popular they’ve had to initiative a ‘no maskfishing mandate’, banning users from only using pictures of themselves in masks on their dating profile.

Implementing new machine-learning technology to flag pictures where a mask is being worn before it’s uploaded, the mandate comes amid fears that people will attempt to ‘lure someone into accepting a date by hiding their true appearance’. It may sound like a shallow fear, but as any woman dating in 2020 knows the very real fear that comes with turning up on a date to find the person you’ve been talking to isn’t who they appear to be.

‘I was catfished by a man that used a male influencers pictures – I didn’t realise this until later, obviously – and it was really scary,’ says Sarah, 29 from Manchester. ‘Nothing bad happened thankfully as we were in a public setting, but it made me realise how easy it is to end up on a date with a complete weirdo and who knows what they’re capable of if they can live a double life like that? I kept thinking after “Imagine if I’d invited him to my house?”’.

‘It is scary to me if people are using masks more on dating apps because if it becomes a regular thing it would be a lot easier for catfishes to get away with fooling someone,’ Sarah continues. ‘Even if someone’s not a catfish it’s like “What are they trying to hide?”, I’d be really uncomfortable committing to a date when they won’t even show me their face because you have to ask yourself why.’

That’s the issue 27-year-old Abi, from Liverpool, has too. Not just because of the fears women have around meeting strangers from the internet, but also because not being able to show your face on dating apps is a clear sign of insecurity.

‘I don’t swipe right for anyone in sunglasses, a cap or whose not facing the camera properly in their pictures, so there’s no way I’m swiping right for someone in an actual mask,’ she says. ‘It’s not a superficial thing for me, it’s that they clearly have low self-worth. If you don’t like even one picture of yourself where I can clearly see what you look like, that’s a red flag for me. I want someone secure in themselves, I don’t have the energy to be someone’s therapist.’

So there you have it, whether you consider mask-fishing dangerous or downright weird, it’s a no from women.

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