California cities dominate national catfish rankings as major West Coast hub takes the crown of shame

There may be plenty of fish in the sea — but a new survey says West Coast singles are getting hooked by catfish.One Washington city was named America’s catfish capital in a new Casino.org ranking of where online daters are most likely to be reeled in by fake romantic profiles — but California was swimming right behind in the digital dating hall of shame.San Francisco was ranked second in the nation, as San Diego tied for third with Las Vegas.While Bakersfield landed in fifth, giving the Golden State three of the top five cities where lonely hearts are apparently most likely to get duped by too-good-to-be-true matches.The survey, released ahead of National Catfish Day on Thursday, June 25, polled 2,000 Americans who has used online dating apps and sites, then created a “Catfish Index” based on how often respondents said they had been catfished, how many times it happened, the severity of the les and whether money was involved.Seattle took the crown of shame with a (not so) perfect score of 100, with nearly 94% of locals saying they had been catfished online — and 7% saying they’ve been catfished five or more times.San Francisco came right behind it — proving Silicon Valley isn’t the only place where people are inventing things online.About 71% of San Francisco locals said they had been catfished, and 80% of those victims said they sent money to someone who turned out to be fake, with reported losses averaging $1,500.The most common tricks in the Bay Area were fake photos and phony claims of wealth and success — because apparently even dating profiles need a little startup funding.San Diego also got soaked, tying Las Vegas for the third-highest catfish score.

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