British comedian Bob Mortimer has become the unwitting face of a sophisticated online dating scam. The 65-year-old TV personality is embroiled in a Tinder controversy despite being happily married to Lisa Matthews since 2015.
This digital deception came to light when eagle-eyed users spotted a profile featuring Mortimer’s likeness on the popular dating app Tinder, which boasts a staggering 2.4 million users in the UK alone, according to Ofcom statistics. The fraudulent account, masquerading as a 50-year-old named “Kyle,” painted a picture of an active, health-conscious individual with an interest in yoga, meditation, and cultural pursuits.
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The scammers behind this ruse went to great lengths to create a convincing facade. Per The Sun, they described their fictional character as a “big time texter” in search of a meaningful, long-term relationship. In a nod to Mortimer’s real-life television series Gone Fishing, co-hosted with Paul Whitehouse, the profile even listed fish as pets.
The perpetrators stole various photographs from Mortimer’s genuine social media accounts to lend credibility to their creation. One such image, showing the comedian enjoying a soccer match, was originally shared on his official Instagram in March 2023.
Upon being alerted to this fraudulent activity, Tinder‘s management team swiftly intervened, removing the fake profile from their platform. A spokesperson for the dating app stressed their zero-tolerance policy towards such deceptive practices, telling The Sun, “Catfishing is a violation of our Community Guidelines and Terms of Use, and users who are discovered catfishing are removed from our platform.”
The spokesperson further outlined the steps individuals can take if they suspect they’re being impersonated on Tinder. “If someone believes they are being impersonated on Tinder, they should contact our support team with relevant details here, which is available to anyone regardless of whether they use Tinder. From there, our team will promptly search for and remove any matching profile.”
To combat such scams, Tinder has implemented verification measures. The spokesperson advised users to “look for the ‘blue tick’, which indicates that the user’s age and likeness has been verified through our Photo and ID Verification programmes. Additionally, all users can request that their match photo verifies prior to messaging.”
This incident serves as a stark reminder of the pervasive nature of online dating scams, with Mortimer joining a growing list of celebrities whose identities have been stolen and appropriated. TV presenter Laura Whitmore, radio host Emma Louise Jones, and Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies have all fallen victim to similar schemes in recent years.
