Entertainment
3 AdultFriendFinder red flags — how to avoid scams on AFF
Depending on who you ask, AdultFriendFinder is either the Wild West of hookup sites, an “anything goes” paradise for adult fun, or a total scam replete with bots, fake profiles, and inactive accounts.
After months of personal testing, I can confidently say which AFF you experience ultimately boils down to how you use the site. If you approach it naively, without a strategy, you’re probably going to have some frustrating experiences. On the other hand, if you exercise a modicum of caution and common sense, you’ll discover a huge, fun, and kink-friendly community.
Here are three red flags to look out for as you use AFF, to help you spot potential scammers and separate the authentic users from the fake profiles.
Hookup apps for everyone
AdultFriendFinder
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readers’ pick for casual connections
Tinder
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top pick for finding hookups
Hinge
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popular choice for regular meetups
Credit: AdultFriendFinder
Unverified accounts
AdultFriendFinder already offers a fantastic first step in combatting fake profiles that they call ConfirmID. Once you’ve created an account, you can, at any time, upload a clear scan of a government-issued ID card and then, using a webcam, undergo a quick face verification scan to confirm that you are indeed the person identified in the government document.
This step strikes the perfect balance between not being onerous enough to annoy the average user but still requiring enough effort to deter scammers, who notoriously go after the low-hanging fruit.
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Once you’ve completed the ConfirmID sequence, you’ll be rewarded with a verification badge on your profile, and we strongly recommend that you limit your one-on-one interactions on the site to other verified users.
Perfect profile photos
Alright, admittedly this one requires some personal judgment, as everyone should strive to upload good, high-quality photos of themselves to dating websites. But if every photo looks like it belongs in a magazine, or if the person in the photo looks a little too good to be true, you should exercise caution.
In the age of generative AI and filters, it’s trivially easy to create a fake photo or series of photos, so you should also be on the lookout for what isn’t in the photos. Are there recognizable local landmarks (clubs, restaurants, well-known parks, or street corners) in the photos, or are they all equally generic?
Over-eager chatters
Ever since chat bots became a thing, dating sites have become plagued with them, and as AI improves more and more, it’s not always easy to know, right away, if the “person” you’re talking to is really human. One dead giveaway, though, is how much they chat and how quickly they reply.
Real people go off on tangents, employ non sequiturs, and sometimes stumble with awkward questions or comments. Chat bots, on the other hand, are typically always chipper and extremely fast-talking, so much so that a paragraph-long answer can come back to you in seconds.
They also almost always have an agenda, too, whether that’s directing you to click on a link (“Follow my Instagram profile”) or getting you to divulge some potentially compromising bit of personal information about yourself.
Entertainment
This $35 ChatGPT-powered app makes writing a non-fiction book easier than ever
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With Youbooks, you provide a detailed description of your book’s subject, and it gets to work. You can set the tone and style, upload your own writing samples so it can emulate your tone, and upload your own supporting documents so it can be based on your own research.
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Entertainment
Anyone who wants to learn piano should see flowkey’s best price so far — just $56 for 5 years
TL;DR: Get flowkey’s five-year Classic Plan for $55.99 with code JULY30 (reg. $899) — its lowest price ever.
Future and current pianists who would love some lesson flexibility without sacrificing growth, flowkey has never been cheaper, and this price is not likely to come around again in the near future.
Through July 5, you can get the flowkey Classic Plan (five-year subscription) for just $55.99 (reg. $899) with code JULY30 — the lowest price we’ve seen on this piano learning app.
If learning piano has been living on your someday list, this is a good time to move it up.
Flowkey is designed to make practicing feel approachable instead of intimidating. Whether you’re sitting at a keyboard for the first time or returning after a long break, the app guides you through each lesson at your own pace. It even listens while you play, offering instant feedback so you know when you’ve nailed a note — or when it’s time to try again.
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The Classic Plan includes access to more than 1,000 classical and public-domain songs, featuring composers like Beethoven, Mozart, Chopin, Bach, Debussy, Liszt, and Brahms. You’ll also unlock every course and exercise, covering everything from reading sheet music and learning chords to proper hand positioning and rhythm.
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Get a five-year subscription to the flowkey Classic Plan for a one-time $55.99 (reg. $899) through 11:59 p.m. PT on July 5 with code JULY30.
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Entertainment
Farscape Breakout Stars Showed Off Their Hidden Talents On Screen
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published

By the time most actors show up on screen they have already spent a lifetime working in entertainment. There are levels talent and creativity on any set that the audience never gets to see. Musical theater, gymnastics, dancing, martial arts, the list goes on and on, which is why it’s always cool when they get to show off with the cameras rolling. Farscape found time for its cast to work in their real-life talents into their characters giving us great moments on-screen, and a celebration of the raw talent on display behind the scenes.
Chiana’s Fire Dance

Gigi Edgley played Chiana in what was supposed to be a one-off appearance in Season 1. She did such a great job as the cat-like alien that the writers changed their plans and she became a part of the main cast, and eventually, the face of the series. Chiana showed off a lot of hidden talents over the course of her time on the Moya, but one came directly from Gigi’s performance background. Season 3, Episode 13, “Stratch’n’Sniff,” during their time on a pleasure planet Chiana and Jool have a bet about who can entertain a crowd the best. Jool does a flip, Chiana dances with firesticks.
The moment was written in after Gigi was spotted twirling fire off set. Turns out, she’s a talented flow artist, having picked up the skill from the circus. Her family has been in the circus business since the 1930s and the Edgley’s are credited for bringing the Moscow State Circus to Australia. It wasn’t only Chiana who constantly surprised the crew of the Moya with her talents, it was Gigi Edgley surprising the cast and crew of Farscape with hers.
Scorpius Rocks Out

Scorpius is one of the greatest villains in sci-fi history. His distinctive black leather outfit and haunting, whispered threats made him an immediate hit from the first moment he appeared in the hidden Peacekeeper base. Wayne Pygram, like Gigi Edgley, was never intended to be part of Farscape’s main cast. Fortunately, he was the perfect man for the role and turned Scorpius into the recurring archenemy of John Crichton. He did so good, that the producers decided they needed a way to keep Scorpius as a threat without watering him down.
That led to the creation of Harvey, a part of Scorpius inside Crichton’s head. Harvey appeared wearing a Hawaiian shirt and was again, an immediate hit. Season 2’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” features multiple Harvey/Scorpius avatars, including one playing the drums. Wayne Pygram didn’t need a stunt double for that as he’s an accomplished drummer in real life. He taught percussion to students at high schools in Australia, and alongside his Farscape co-star Anthony Simcoe (Ka D’argo), played in the band Signal Room.
Farscape is filled with talented performers, including the puppeteers who brought Pilot and Rygel to life in every episode Virginia Hey didn’t only play Zhaan as a spiritual guide, she’s one in real life, and has spent decades leading spiritual wellness retreats and seminars. The success of the small Australian sci-fi series makes sense once you see the incredible talent responsible for giving us one of the greatest sci-fi shows of all time.
Farscape is currently streaming for free on Pluto, Tubi, The CW, Sling TV, and The Roku Channel.
