We all come across toxic people at some point, but how do we spot them? Below are 16 warning signs of an evil person and how to avoid them.

Evil can be defined, but it is difficult to define. Simply put: an evil person is someone who engages in malicious behavior.

Some argue that they are immoral, sick, corrupt, or evil, but these words are hard to define.

Debauchery for one is a normal state for another. But when you meet an evil person, no amount of skeptical definitions will change your mind.

The truth is, you’ll know it when you see it. Bad people come from all kinds of places, often from the ones you least expect.

We find them in our schools, our churches, our houses of worship, and the homes of our friends. Everywhere we look. There is only one solution for the bad guys in our lives.

Here are 16 signs you are dealing with an evil person

1. The pleasure of others is a misfortune
   Enjoy the misfortune of others
   The insidious ways of bad guys often leave them so twisted and turned inside out that they feel flattered when they see bad luck.

It may be a disaster in the news or a tragic situation in front of them. They seem to take pleasure in sadness and enjoy the bad feelings of others.

Every time an evil person gets hurt in his life he falls when bad things happen to other people.

The real danger here is that they may create bad situations for you and others in their lives so that they can enjoy the tragedies they create.

It’s important to realize who they are before terrible things happen to you and the people you love. If horrible things happening is all that can help them feel better, you can’t save them or them.

2. Control issues

The bad guys have this in common: They control. But it’s not just about controlling you. They often feel uncomfortable and vulnerable if they are not in control of every aspect of their lives.

Often, spiteful people are so cruel to the world and the people around them that they cannot entrust any part of their lives to another person. Because of this obsession, she can come off as polite, concise, and precise.

But when you let them get close, they start to control your life too, which makes you love them. Defying an evil person’s desires does not always result in outright evil actions. You may feel accurate. Not a slap in the face, but a kick to the heart.

The evil person’s goal is to control the way you feel on the inside, and now how you feel on the outside.

3. The usual dishonesty

Let’s be real. Everyone lies. We all do. Some are little lies, others are big, big lies.

But while everyone lies, not everyone is a liar. The liar is a really special breed. They lie pathologically, constantly, sometimes without realizing it.

An evil liar often lies to the point that it is their lies that shape their reality. In living a life of lies, their minds become captive to their evil behavior.

Some bad guys lie just a little bit, perhaps even extending the truth to make themselves look stronger, smarter, or better.

Some bad guys lie to you and others. But one thing is for sure, they are liars.

The lies act as a tool to manipulate a reality that does not serve them in the way they would like it to. When they are caught in a lie, they will likely try to get the spotlight on you.

Make you question reality as it is and keep you looking at them as an asset when in fact they are a liar.

4. You feel strange around them

It is well established that each of our bodies emits an energy field.

Why that is, we’re not entirely clear on. It can act as an intuitive defense system.

But in the same way that if you eat bad food, it shows up on your skin, if you are evil on the inside, it shows up in your energy field.

This may be why bad guys give you a creepy vibe without doing anything evil to you at all.

Those within your subtle energy field can be captured by your energy field. Oftentimes, the surest sign that someone is mean is that you don’t feel comfortable with them.

You get scary feelings and you can’t quite put your finger on them. You may sound crazy to people who listen to you talk about it but don’t deny the way the bad guys feel in our world.

Trust your instincts and don’t worry about being misdirected. If you get the wrong idea about someone, apologize. But it’s better safe than sorry.

5. Misleading

Controlling reality is what gives the evil person most of their power. By doing so, they would be able to make it conform to their petty wants and desires.

This is why bad people know: they mislead you into thinking one way or another about them, about the people who are already in your life, and about yourself.

This misinformation can come in many different forms, such as misquoting, lying, stretching the truth, and misrepresenting facts. The result is a world of their creation and a world that you find difficult to understand or believe in.

This is one way to detect an evil person, especially a cunning person: look for ways to mislead others. If you see it, go the other way immediately.

Related: 10 Strategies To Help You Deal With The Difficult People In Your Life

6. Ruthless

Let’s cover what we’ve talked about so far. The bad guys are taking control. They are liars.

They take pleasure in misfortune. They make you feel weird on the inside.

You know the worst part about everything? They are never sorry for the things they do and the way they make you feel. The bad guys really don’t have any regrets.

If you press them on the fact that they don’t apologize for their malicious behavior, they will deflect, push it towards you, and frame you for believing that the reality you know to be true is not actually true.

In fact, all they want to do is maintain their current quality of life by controlling you, and an apology would indicate fallibility. The bad guys in our world want you to see perfection to keep you wrapped around their toes.

Admitting a mistake would shatter that image they had so carefully polished.

7. Cruelty

So far, we’ve talked about villains and the subtle ways they express their inner spiteful desires. Not all bad guys like to be malicious about it. Some choose to be upfront with her. And one of the ways they do that is through cruelty.

This can come in the form of fighting and hurting loved ones; their spouses, children, and friends or even harming animals.

Evil people are often the victims of the prisons they have built for themselves, which is why they take so much joy out of adversity and pain.

It eases the pain that each of them feels inside their hearts. But that doesn’t mean you justify it or hold on to the bad guys.

If you are with someone who expresses themselves in these harsh ways, find ways to escape as soon as possible. One day, they might push their cruelty too far and do some serious damage.

8. NO LIABILITY

An evil person does not have some kind of moral compass. They will do as they please and will never feel responsible for the pain they have caused others. If they sense any kind of blame coming their way, they will start redirecting it immediately.

They like to blame others and have no understanding of what an apology is. They think apologies are for the weak. They would rather make you apologize for their mistakes.

Related: How Abusers Trap You Into Staying In Abusive Relationships With Them

9. Warnings from friends

Oftentimes, one of the first signs that a person is truly evil is if their “friends” and family are issuing warnings to them. They may talk about an ex-boyfriend or girlfriend who ran away from them.

They may casually dismiss past relationship issues and make excuses for the bad person in their life. This is a kind of manipulation, but it can also be seen as a warning sign of impending disaster.

In a sense, these people are telling you that something is wrong and that you have a responsibility to do something about it.

Other times, the people in their lives will openly tell you that an evil person is not healthy and that you should avoid them at all costs.

Either way, don’t ignore the signs of a truly evil person, especially when people who supposedly love them tell you so.

10. A fair-weather friend

If an evil person comes to your aid, know that they are doing so with a purpose.

In other cases, they will only be there when things are going well for you. Once things start to go downhill, she’s nowhere to be found.

11. Racism, sexism, homophobia, or bigotry

Evil thrives when good is divided. This has made some of the most evil people in the world, from Hitler to Stalin and Osama bin Laden, very successful.

They take the slight differences between people and use them to plant bigger and bigger cracks that end in disaster.

Too often, they use bigotry, homophobia, sexism, racism, and fascism, in general, to drive away good people, and to breed more bad guys in the world.

We won’t mince words here: white supremacists are evil. Racists are evil. Homophobia/transphobia is vicious. And Fanatics, while not every time, are often evil. Be aware of these types of people. Some of them are just misleading, but many of them are downright malicious.

12. Manipulator

Evil people are as capable of showing kindness as any malicious behavior, but what sets them apart is the price that comes with their kindness.

Oftentimes, bad guys will only be nice to you to get what they need from you later, whether that be money, sex, submission, or worse.

Point out to them that if they try to manipulate you based on their previous kindness, that kindness doesn’t come at a price.

You don’t need any push or motivation to do the right thing and be nice to each other.

Related: 5 Romantic Phrases That Are Major Relationship Red Flags

13. Underrated

One of the worst manipulations of an evil person is emotional manipulation.

Usually, this comes in the form of disparagement.

Underestimation comes in different forms, too. You can play the victim when you do nothing wrong. Making fun of your appearance, your body, your interests, hopes, hobbies, goals, friends, home, dreams – really anything can be belittled in the eyes of an evil person.

Don’t let bad people change your opinion of yourself and the decisions you’ve made. Simply say, “I’m sorry you’re not happy with this part of my life, but it’s important to me.” This is who.

14. Confusion and conflict

In the same way that the bad guys use the above tactics to divide the good guys, they will use chaos, confusion, and conflict to their advantage.

The more distracted, afraid, and uncertain you are, the more power they have over you.

You can fight this by being safe and secure in yourself, even when you don’t fully understand what’s going on in your life and world.

Oftentimes, it’s the bad guys who put all of the confusion and strife in your life in the first place. Don’t fall into their trap.

No matter what happens, maintain a calm demeanor. Use a balanced approach to dealing with conflict and confusion in your life.

Related: 18 Signs of A Dysfunctional Family and How To Deal

15. A double life

Hatred people will never reveal their true lives to you. To say they live a double life is a massive understatement. They live hundreds of lives. They are who they need to be to get what they want.

They are a different person from everyone else. They have a well-crafted history and an image that they are trying to portray. The one thing they all have in common is that no one knows who they are.

16. No limits

Bad guys are persistent, sociable, intense, clingy, and fake. In many ways, they are like boomerangs. No matter how hard you try to kick them out of your life, they always end up circling you.

But only if you let them. You see, an evil person will try to manipulate you into opening the door and letting them in again.

But there are serious consequences to doing so, and a spiteful person will be happy to take off his jacket, take off his shoes, and park himself in front of the TV if you let him in (so to speak).

One thing is for sure: no matter what happens when you banish an evil person from your life, they will always try to get them back. It is inevitable, but it can be prevented.

How do you deal with an evil person?

No matter how evil, collected, intense, clingy, or fake a person is, they can be kicked out of your life forever.

They will use every tool at their disposal to coerce you into letting them stay.

They will manipulate, they will lie, they will pretend to be nice, they will attack and belittle, and they will mislead and control.

But one thing is for sure, no matter when you made the call to give them the boot of your space, your circle, and your life, you can never go back.

They will try to convince you to change your mind, but the only way to free yourself from them is to leave them behind.

An evil person can change, but he can only do it on his own. And you can’t force them to change.

They can only change when their hearts are open, they are willing to atone for what they have done, and they are willing to work hard to reform their malevolent ways.