
Operation Net Nanny is a proactive sting operation that utilizes common adult dating websites like Craigslist as well as Social Media Apps including SKOUT, Badoo, Tinder, Whisper, OkCupid, Grindr, Scruff, Grizzly, Plenty of Fish, Book of Matches, and others.3 The sting catfishes random individuals (not a specific target or potential predator) who are looking for dates or hookups on adult websites. The operation is not trying to infiltrate any kind of ongoing criminal activity. Law enforcement conducts several general scenarios or schemes 1) Law enforcement officers pretend to be a teenager (13 years old or younger) or 2) Law enforcement officers pretend to be a mom suggesting the unsuspecting citizen teach her children (often 13 and younger) about sex as her father did with her. In these cases, a bait-and-switch will occur: the “teen” will change her age and the mom will direct the conversation from her to the children. Photos of actual law enforcement officers may be used to match that of a child, but most of the time law enforcement officers use an image of an older person, such as 16 years old or older; they may disguise the image to further deceive the other party.