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He gets paid Rs 80 K to see if your woman cheats

Honey-trapper Jack Knowles reveals why people pay him to do a loyalty test on their partners. Illustrations by Uttam Ghosh

Jack Knowles, a honey-trapper, is a master seducer who is paid to prove that someone's other half is two-timing.

Suspicious men hire him to catch out their unsuspecting partner and these jealous men dish out a lot of cash for his service.

Single Knowles has made approximately 200,000 pounds from his business in its first two years, charging up to 1,000 pounds a time.

The 22-year-old started his firm in reaction to his girlfriend cheating and after a strange introduction to honey-trapping.

"I was in a nightclub in Birmingham and a middle-aged guy approached me," the Sun quoted him as saying.

"Out of the blue he told me he thought I was a good-looking guy.

"He then explained his wife was on a night out down the road and asked if I could flirt with her to see if she reciprocated and then let him know the answer.

"He showed me photos of her and gave me 100 pounds in cash.

"I'd never heard of honey-trapping, that was my introduction," he said.

'The relationship ended when I found out she had cheated on me'

The unusual job normally associated with glamorous girls discovering if men are up to no good came about when the entrepreneur from Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, was cheated on and left heart-broken.

"I split up with my girlfriend in March 2009. I had been with her for two years, ever since high school.

I thought she was my soulmate, someone I wanted to live with and the girl I would have proposed to.

The relationship ended when I found out she had cheated on me.

I found out from one of her social networking sites, after she left it open. There were intimate messages.

I took the news really badly. I was devastated and really couldn't have predicted that she would be unfaithful.

I thought things were great and always trusted her.

I was surprised someone could cheat so easily after being together so long," Knowles said.

It was only weeks after being dumped that he was asked by the guy in the club to check on his wife, and nine months later he started his own business.

'It dawned on me there was money to be made from this as a job'

"When the guy asked me to help, I decided I wanted to. I sympathised with him as I had been through a similar experience.

I went off and flirted with his missus -- she didn't respond.

I knew the guy had no problems so I went back to him and told him I had watched his wife in the club, made a move on her and she was fine and there was no evidence she was playing away. He was really happy," he said.

It was after this random encounter that Knowles got the idea of setting up his honey-trapping business.

"It dawned on me there was money to be made from this as a job.

I had such a bad experience in a relationship that I would rather a person find out if they were in the same situation."

'I started getting business by word of mouth from people in the local area'

"I set up a website in December 2009 and it went from there.

I advertised the company on Google and just a week after setting up, the first person contacted me.

I decided to work out how much to charge by comparing pricing with other agencies offering a similar service.

The price depends on the location. Most clients were in Manchester London or Birmingham.

As Birmingham is near to me, I wouldn't charge too much -- about 300 pounds. If it was a night out honey-trapping away from home, my prices go up to 1,000 pounds.

The higher price includes expenses of a night out and hotel room," he said.

His business didn't take long to grow and within six months he didn't need to promote himself on the Internet any more.

"I started getting business by word of mouth from people in the local area after I had been working for six months.

I no longer needed my web page and shut it down.

I didn't like how it gave the public my private mobile number. I have never got abuse but that was always a worry," Knowles said.

'I never thought that it was like stalking because that is a very serious crime'

Knowles has no specific recipe for honey-trapping.

"I stand back and watch how the lady in question is acting.

The guy may know his partner is going for a night out in Newcastle, so I will travel there to see how she is behaving.

I will observe whether she is with other guys and will then go up to the girl. I'm quite shy and this helps as they find it easier to talk to me.

If I flirt with her and she kisses me, I will walk away from the situation as soon as possible and then report back to her partner that she's not faithful," he said.

Although people may find his work unsettling, he defends what he does for a living.

"I have never thought that it was like stalking because that is a very serious crime.

I make sure that I never come across as threatening.

Last year a top businessman asked me for the ultimate evidence.

He told me he wanted to see if his partner would go into the bedroom of the hotel she was staying in, with me.

She went ahead with my offer and then when I got to her room, the guy came to see with his own eyes what was going on.

I checked to make sure the girl was all right but it was clear she was unfaithful," he added.