Facebook’s Dating App

Dating apps have been around for over 10 years. They are extremely popular and it is no surprise that Facebook decided to get in on the action in 2018. It was first launched for Columbian users and by the end of the year it grew to 14 other countries. Right around 2019 it hit the US market. In late 2020 it launched in Europe.

So how is it the same as other apps and what are the differences? We decided to do some research into this app to see if it is worthwhile to use in your investigations. Here are some facts we learned.

Facts about Facebook Dating

  • Facebook Dating is free to use
  • In 2021 The Verge revealed that not many people were using the app
  • Over 57% of Facebook users have never heard of Facebook Dating
  • Facebook Dating is a feature of the standard Facebook app, not a stand alone product
  • Facebook has a 2.7 star rating on Apple’s app store
  • Facebook has a 4.1 star rating on Google’s app store
  • Facebook Dating is not desktop compatible

Facebook Dating’s Unique Features

One of the most interesting features of Facebook Dating is that you can not take screenshots. In an effort to gain confidence among their users, they created a security feature that restricts users from taking screenshots.

You need a Facebook profile to create a profile on the dating app. However, they work independently from one another. Nothing is ever shared to your news feed from the Facebook dating app. Your friends will never be notified that you have a dating profile on Facebook Dating.

The app has a good amount of settings that may be used. For example, you can create a list of users you want to avoid. You can also block users who are friends of your friends.

Like other dating apps, Facebook Dating is location based. You are encouraged to turn on your location so that you can be matched with singles in your area. They do have a “Match Anywhere” however, it is not available to all users currently.

Recently, Facebook Dating implemented age verification tools to its platform. They are working with the age verification company, Yoti, according to their website.

https://about.fb.com/news/2022/12/facebook-dating-age-verification/

Facebook Groups

Fast Company published an article back in October, on how users are using Facebook Groups as a matchmaking service. “Depending on the group, users will share pictures of themselves or of a friend who is looking for a relationship, and then will field the responses.”

Privacy and Searching for a Cheating Partner

Privacy is a major concern for Mark Zuckerberg these days so it is no surprise that Facebook is being very cautious when it comes to managing the dating app. Other dating apps are feeling the pressure as well to create a safe environment for their users.

This makes it much more challenging to search dating apps for a partner who may be cheating. YouGov found that 17% of people who are currently date-cruising on apps or websites are there partly to cheat on their significant others. That’s more than one in six. Statistically, if you swipe six times, one of those potential matches is going to be a cheater.

Fake Profiles & Online Impersonation

When watching my local news the other evening, I heard of a case that really surprised me. A Town Commissioner of a small town in North Carolina, disagreed with his fellow board members over a specific topic. So much so, that he decided to create a fake Facebook profile and use it to harrass and argue with residents. Later, he admitted using a Charlotte area businessman’s real name & real profile picture. The surprising part of this is that we expect this from scammers, but not someone who would be sitting on a board of a city or town. It seems that these days, anything is possible. Being proactive is a must.

Online Impersonation Tricks

  1. Facebook Marketplace: Fake ads on the site have become a real problem. Some of the ads look like they are from legitimate businesses such as Home Depot, Lowes, etc.. They make the post look very real, using lots of pictures. The Better Business Bureau says the fake ads are common and they get thousands of complaints each year. “Impersonation is one of the key factors of what scammers love to do,” Sarah Wetzel of the BBB said. “They love to impersonate those well-known companies because that way they already have a foot in the door with the consumers.”
Source: Digital Information World

2. Rental Scams: Scammers ( who operate anywhere in the world ) can advertise a fake rental online. Next, they add a sense of urgency to attempt to get a deposit on the property. They will use excuses as to why they can not meet you in person. They also make sure to tell you that several people are looking at the property. Nationally, over 230 rental scams have been reported this year, up from the same time last year. Victims report losing an average of $550.

Better Business Bureau offers these tips:

  • Do an online search for the landlord’s email and phone number. If the same ad is listed in other cities, that’s a red flag.
  • If you can’t see the property in person, try to find someone you trust to go and confirm the unit is what’s being advertised online.
  • Don’t fall for deals that are too good to be true. If a unit is well below market rate or promising extra amenities than normal, it could be a red flag.
  • Be wary of required payments through cash transfer apps. Peer to peer apps are meant to be used with people you know.

Use the Better Business Bureau’s scam tracker as a tool to both report and prevent scam.

3. Catfishing: When someone creates a fake identity online for the purpose of starting a relationship. They then use this as a way to gain interest and confidence so they can scam the person out of money. Social Catfish is a software company that works to help people who believe they have been the victim of catfishing. It is one of the many software platforms we use at eChatter when conducting online research. They also have a great reverse image tool within the platform.

Impersonation of a Business

This is sometimes called Domain Spoofing. When done correctly, it can damage a business’ reputation while scamming consumers who fall for their pitch. All while impersonating the business. Two of the most common ways is cybersquatting and typosquatting.

  • Cybersquatting: Scammers use already established business websites and copy them to look just like the real website. They then sell counterfeit products.
  • Typosquatting: Scammers register a domain name similar to that of the legitimate business. They purposely use typo errors to change it but at first glance, people take it as the legitimate company’s website. This is sometimes used to redirect someone to a competitor’s website or try to collect ad revenue.

This just scratches the surface of the many ways scammers use the web and social media. It is a subject we will continue to write about in the future, so check back often for updates.

Workmans’ Compensation Claims and Social Media

Next to surveillance, social media discovery has been the Investigator’s best method for disproving workman’s compensation claims. Because fraud is so prevalent in these cases, insurance companies make it a point of investigating claims. The National Insurance Crime Bureau reports an estimated $7.2 billion in annual costs towards workers’ compensation fraud, making it an expensive problem for insurance companies.

It helps to first understand the types of fraud insurance companies investigate.

3 Types of Workmans’ Comp Fraud

Claims Journal describes three types of Workmans’ Comp insurance fraud:

Policy-Related Fraud: Policy-related fraud occurs when a company intentionally manipulates or withholds information from its insurance company in an attempt to lower its premium payment. For example, it is fraudulent for a business to inaccurately report the size of its workforce, misclassify employees or re-emerge as a new company on paper in an attempt to obtain a lower experience modification factor rating—a factor that adjusts the premium based on claims history.


Claim-Related Fraud: Claim-related fraud typically occurs when an employee falsely claims a work-related injury or illness in an attempt to gain a workers’ compensation insurance benefit. This type of fraud can be committed if an employee is injured outside of the workplace, but claims the injury occurred at work. It can also happen if an employee exaggerates the severity of an injury in order to receive a greater benefit.


Medical Provider Fraud: Medical provider fraud is committed when a medical provider deliberately attempts to profit off the workers’ compensation system by unnecessarily performing services on a claimant solely to collect an insurance payment. Fraudulent billing and kickback schemes with pharmacies or medical specialists are other examples.

Claim Related Fraud

This is the most common fraud case that most investigators are hired for. We have conducted hundreds of deep web scans on individuals who are suspected of fraud. Many times we identify contradictory photos posted in social media. For example, a claimant has back related issues, but can be seen in a social media post water skiing.

If attorneys are involved, many times the claimant is advised to be careful what they post in social media. They may be instructed to tell their family and friends not to tag them in any photos. The set their privacy settings high.

In fact, there is even software out now that can help attorneys monitor their client’s social media accounts for them. It is called Private Footprint. They describe their software as, “Client Social Media Monitoring for Personal Injury and Disability Lawyers”. It is an interesting approach and I wonder how many attorneys are using it.

In any case, it makes it more difficult for the investigator. We can always tell when a person has been advised to lock down their social media. Even so, there are times when photos are out there on friends and family members social media that the claimant does not remember.

In the end, people over share in social media. This can be a key factor in gathering evidence in a case and it is always worth it to check. You never know what you will find until you look.

Finding People on OnlyFans

OnlyFans has exploded in popularity during the Covid pandemic. It has been an outlet for people to kill a little boredom, the same way many social platforms have done. This gives all of us a plethora of additional information to find on a POI (person of interest). Finding people on OnlyFans can be tricky. We will share some tips that we have found help during our searches.

Key OnlyFans Statistics for 2022

  • OnlyFans has 170 million users
  • Every day 500,000 people join OnlyFans
  • OnlyFans has 1.5 million content creators
  • The top OnlyFans creators make $100,000 a month
  • The average OnlyFans creator makes $151 per month
  • The average creator on OnlyFans has 21 subscribers
  • OnlyFans has paid more than $2 billion to its creators so far

What is it all about?

According to their website, “OnlyFans is the social platform revolutionizing creator and fan connections. The site is inclusive of artists and content creators from all genres and allows them to monetize their content while developing authentic relationships with their fanbase.” They pride themselves on being welcoming of all creative genres and content. ( hint…hint…. lines are blurred between Influencers, pornography, and sex workers). Like any site like this, it has the potential of a huge amount of earnings. OnlyFans reports over 50 million monthly users and 1 million content creators on the platform. 

Searching on the Site:

Finding people on OnlyFans can be challenging if they don’t cross reference their profile on other social sites or websites. One of my very favorite ways to search in social media is to use Google and searching Only Fans is no different. Here is a quick cheat sheet to use:

  1. Open your browser and go to the search bar
  2. Type in “onlyfans.com/insert username here”
  3. Continue to use various usernames you know belong to your subject

If this doesn’t work, try another way:

  1. Open your browser and go to the search bar
  2. Type in “search:onlyfans.com *insert username or name here*”
  3. Continue to use various usernames you know belong to your subject

Many times people who have profiles on Only Fans, cross reference on their other social media platforms ( especially Instagram ). Be sure to comb through sites to see if you can find anything there as well.

I would try the above methods using all search engines, not just Google. You never know what another search engine might pick up. It is worth the extra time it takes.

Can You Screenshot in Only Fans?

You can take a screenshot in Only Fans without the creator knowing about it. Since it is a web-based service, it has no means of identifying whether a screenshot has been taken.

Search Engine Tool

There is a tool for searching OnlyFans, but like anything else, it can be hit or miss. It is worth it to try however. It is called, “https://onlysearch.co/”

The site was designed to help OnlyFans influencers connect with their fans. So it does index publicly available information, display picture, display name, bio, price, and location — and display this information on OnlySearch, when key search terms appear in bios. 

As of this writing, the above methods are the quickest ways to conduct a search on this site.