Catfishing & Google Image Search by Image

If Manti Te'o had just used Google Image Search by Image, he might not have had to contend with  the last media blitz interview, still being asked about his "imaginary girlfriend" catfish scandal as exposed by Deadspin. (I've been *fascinated* by this story since it broke!) And though I'm not much of a "sporty" girl (though I LOVE me my Orioles!) I hear he handled the recent furor well and may be entertaining the idea of becoming a Baltimore Raven! You go, Manti! Stay strong!

What is Catfishing?
The Manti Te'o scandal is a great teachable moment and example of digital awareness, citizenship, and catfishing.  So, What is catfishing? The Urban Dictionary definition is above. The Term comes from a  movie (and an MTV show). From a related article: "‘Catfishing,’ a slang term for creating fake profiles on social media to create false identities, has its origins in the 2010 movie ‘Catfish,’ a pseudo-documentary that chronicled a young man’s online friendship with a woman that turned out to be very different from her Facebook profile." - International Business Times 
PS. It's a great $2.99 Amazon Prime Rental!

Why Google Image by Image?
Google image search by image can be used for quite a few reasons with one of them being to check if your photograph has been stolen by someone else or is being used by someone somewhere on the web without your permission. To explain how it works, and because it's part of my branding and I knew I would get hits, I used my own cartoon avatar (and branded!) image as drawn & created by Icon Factory (& Twitter Ollie Bird) artist David Lanham. But I could have used a Creative Commons picture OR a suspicious Facebook profile image. (see interesting infographic below)
How to Google Image Search by Image
For those of you who like directions better than pictures or comics: 
1. Go to Google Images and click on the tiny little camera on the right of the search bar - click on it
2. From here you have the option to either paste the URL of an image or upload it
3. Review the results and the Google guess, did someone else use your picture? Were you mentioned in an article or on a blog? Did someone re-name it?

WARNING!
Do note: It is possible to "fool" the search by deception. Downloading a picture, re-naming it, photoshopping it, not tagging it the way it was originally tagged - all tactics similar to Internet typosquatting.

See related articles and links below that touch on this.

Check out this really informative infographic about Real vs. Fake Facebook pages, spoilers - it's all about sexy women trying to catfish or lure gullible guys. Duh!
 


Related Articles
  So, How did this all come up?  
I've recently had 3 smart friends & colleagues ask me how to do the Google Image Search by Image which leaded me to think it was a bit buried and a Comic Tutorial was needed!  This Comic Tutorial is Creative Commons and is also available in several different sizes. Cheers!

Comments

  1. AnonymousNovember 30, 2013 at 9:45 PM

    Is there a way to do this from a smartphone? For example someone on fb puts up a picture of themselves and then I can "save photo" to my phone gallery. Is there a way to search using that picture?

    ReplyDelete
  2. REDDYFebruary 4, 2023 at 9:33 AM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Makerspace for Little or Nothing

Image
Makerspace for Little or Nothing You don't have to spend thousands of dollars to start a Makerspace area. You don't have to have a designated room or rip out bookcases. You can even have a Makerspace on a cart! When we have testing in our Library, I put all our Makerspace stuff on an AV cart and roll it into our server room.  This post evolved from a previous post called Makerspace Starter Kit Updated where I had some of these idea, but I felt that it deserved it's own expanded post. You can take baby steps into the Maker Movement.  I've been saying that for 7 years or so....long before I blogged about it, I tried it out. Yeah, sometimes I try things on the sly to see if they are blogworthy for you! Now....having said that..... WARNING: Controversial Opinion Ahead.  I'm not 100% sold, even after 7 years of talking about the Maker Movement, that it's something that's here to stay and not just a fad. Even though I've (without knowing it!)
Keep reading

Makerspace Starter Kit Updated

Image
Three years ago I shared my Makerspace Starter Kit with you or what I was buying to boost our Makerspace area using four empty Library study carrels that no longer held desktop Macs.  That post has consistently been one of the most viewed posts every week for years and years - with more than 83 THOUSAND views, gee whiz! (Crazy, right?) So, I thought maybe it was time to update it!*  Since then, I've had some major Makerspace successes and a couple dismal (and expensive) Makerspace failures!  So, here's the latest for ya'll with the good, the bad, and the bloody awful! Our MHMS Makerspace How it works: Kids can come in before the 1st period late bell rings, during lunch, or when they've finished their work in class to explore, craft, and create in the Library Media Center. It's not a "class" or an organized offering. It's a free form optional offering of constructivist learning and creativity! It's not as big as some and it hasn't tak
Keep reading

Curating the Happy for Your Future Self

Image
Teacher Tip #112 Teacher Self-Care:  Create a Happy Folder In my School Library Media office desk I had a manilla folder where I carefully tucked all the hand written notes from kiddos & parents to read on a rainy day. I also SHAMELESSLY would first tape them to my office door (let the other teachers internally writhe with envy!)  Nah, really just to keep me motivated and also show the kiddos I appreciated their heartfelt little notes!  But.....before I tucked it away tenderly or taped it to my door, I took a picture of it and uploaded it to Flickr. A digital Happy Folder that pays back dividends of warm fuzzies and motivations for your future self.  Because, let's not kid ourselves, being an educator right now is HARD.  Start this habit NOW.  Don't be like me and wait 10 or 15 years. OK, some of that was because cell phones and digital cameras weren't as handy and as ubiquitous back then. But do your future self a favor, there will be days when you will need it.  Make
Keep reading