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Fact Investigation

Situation

Verify someone you met online

You have been talking to someone you have never met in person, and before this goes further — emotionally, financially, or professionally — you want to know that the person on the other end is who they say they are.

Start a Case AssessmentSee the verification service

Where you probably are

What you're feeling, and what you actually need to know

You are probably not in crisis. You like this person, or the relationship or opportunity feels promising, and you don't want to be paranoid — but something has made you pause: a detail that doesn't quite line up, a request that seemed early, or simply the fact that everything you know about them exists on a screen.

What you actually need is not reassurance or suspicion — it's information. Specifically, whether the identity presented to you is consistent with what is publicly discoverable, and whether independent sources corroborate the basic facts: name, location, employment, and the images used. That is a factual question, and it can usually be approached methodically.

What can realistically be established

  • Whether their photographs appear elsewhere online, under a different name
  • Whether the platforms, accounts and history support the identity claimed
  • Whether a claimed employer, job title or location has a public trace
  • Whether the same persona operates under other profiles or usernames
  • Whether publicly available details are internally consistent

What usually cannot be established

  • Certainty about intentions or future behaviour
  • Access to private messages, private accounts or deleted content
  • A guaranteed real name where someone has no public footprint at all
  • Confirmation of feelings, honesty in conversation, or emotional sincerity

Do this now

Five things you can do yourself, today

These do not replace a formal review, but they cost nothing and often clarify the picture immediately.

  1. STEP 01

    Reverse-image search their photos

    Save a few different photos and check whether they appear elsewhere, under another name, or on stock-photo or modelling sites.

  2. STEP 02

    Ask for a live, unscripted video call

    Request a short call where they perform a simple, specific action on camera. Note excuses, delays or refusals.

  3. STEP 03

    Search their name, employer and city together

    Look for independent confirmation that the job, company or location they describe actually shows a public trace of them.

  4. STEP 04

    Check consistency over time

    Revisit earlier messages. Note any details about age, location, job or family that have quietly changed.

  5. STEP 05

    Do not send money or documents yet

    Whatever the relationship's pace, avoid financial transfers, ID documents or intimate material until independent verification exists.

Before you submit a case

What to gather

You do not need everything on this list to begin, but the more you provide, the broader and faster research can be.

  • Links to every profile you know of
  • Every photograph or screenshot you have received
  • Names, nicknames and usernames used
  • Claimed job, employer, city and country
  • Approximate date contact began, and how it started
  • Any phone number, email address or messaging handle
  • Specific details that felt inconsistent or off

The right service

Online Identity Verification is usually the right starting point

It is a focused check of whether the identity presented to you is consistent with publicly available information — the standard first step when nothing has gone wrong yet, but you want confidence before it does.

If you already have specific reasons to believe the profile is fabricated — mismatched photos, refused calls, a story that keeps changing — a catfish investigation goes deeper into those specific signs. If money has already been requested or sent, a romance scam investigation is the better fit. Either way, a case assessment will confirm which scope suits your situation before anything is charged.

View Online Identity Verification

Deliverable

What a report will contain

  • A clear statement of what was and was not corroborated
  • The sources each finding rests on
  • Any inconsistencies identified, explained plainly
  • Associated accounts identified during research
  • An overall confidence assessment, not a verdict of 'true' or 'false'

Frequently asked questions

Is it wrong to want to verify someone before I trust them?

No. Verifying someone you met online before you invest time, money or personal information is ordinary caution, not an accusation. Most people who go through this process find nothing alarming — the value is in the confidence, either way.

What if they refuse a video call?

A single refusal is not proof of anything, but repeated refusals, excuses or extremely short and evasive calls are a common pattern worth noting alongside other details rather than treated in isolation.

Can you tell me for certain who this person is?

Sometimes research clearly corroborates or contradicts what you've been told; sometimes it can only establish that a claim cannot be confirmed. Both outcomes are reported honestly, and neither is promised before work begins.

How much information do I need to give you to start?

Whatever you have is enough to begin a case assessment — even a name, a profile link and a couple of photographs. More detail generally allows broader and faster research.

Will they know they are being checked?

Research is based on lawful, publicly available information reviewed by an analyst. It does not involve contacting the subject, and there is no way to guarantee they will never notice general online activity, but no message or approach is made to them on your behalf.

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Get clarity before you go further

Describe what you know so far. You'll receive an honest assessment of what can be checked, along with scope and pricing, before any work begins.

Start a Case AssessmentSee How It Works