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Scambaiting Gets Comical; Internet Scammers All Dressed Up

Nurse Nasty writes "Scambaiting is a fun and relaxing full-contact email sport. It's all about baiting Internet and email scammers into exposing themselves and sharing that humiliation with the entire world. Recently I baited four different groups of Internet scammers into being comic book action super-heroes, and then giving them their own 10-page graphic novel. It's a bit of fun and eduction through entertainment." (Warning: The comic contains a bit of naughty language.)

12 of 178 comments (clear)

  1. Who are the victims? by symes · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Sometimes I wonder if those Nigerians willing to engage in these scams are not just the poor and desparate foot soldiers of someone far more nasty... people who are caught in poverty and desparation can do strange things when offered a glimmer of a reward. Now what would be funny is if the 419eater people went and scambaited the Somali pirates. Now that would be worth watching.

    1. Re:Who are the victims? by Jeppe+Salvesen · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Not quite. The 419'ers are proof of how technology and persistence can move people from the lower middle class to the upper middle class.

      --

      Stop the brainwash

    2. Re:Who are the victims? by Opportunist · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Erh... no. It's like carrying monopoly money in your purse so the next thief gets nothing but colored paper instead of money.

      To make sure you see the difference between beggars and thieves: Beggars ask you for money. Thieves trick you into giving it to them. The difference is that in one case it's your free decision.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  2. Re:racist by Donkey_Hotey · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Has ANYBODY noticed that these are fairly creepy and somewhat racist images?

    Just curious--if they were white Europeans, would you be asking the same question?

    --
    (There is supposed to be a Sarcmark® here, but my $1.99 check hasn't cleared, yet...)
  3. Define baiting by hwyhobo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Have we just been baited into reading crap for no good reason? Does that qualify as scam? Scam baiting? Or Baiting scam?

    --
    End anonymous moderation and posting on /.
  4. Re:419 Scams are named for their law they break by phonewebcam · · Score: 5, Insightful

    An obvious scam the government can't afford to shut down because of the taxes it brings in? We have one of those too ... its called the tobacco industry.

  5. Re:Slashbaiting by Registered+Coward+v2 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Nurse Nasty is one of the regulars at 419eater.com, I doubt if they did this to generate traffic. The more peopel know about 419 fraud and the various methods used to scam people, the better. Even learning simple things, like why a check "clearing" doesn't, in the US at least, mean it is a good check; and may prevent soemone from being a victim.

    You'd be surprised how many people aren't aware of how scams work. I ran into someone selling his bike; he had received a "money order" for the purchase, shipping, and an "opps, I sent to much please send me a Western Union money order for the overage less an a extra $200 for your troubles" overage. I explained to him that it probably was a classic overpayment fraud and either take the MO to his bank or police station and explain his concerns; or to simply send an email saying deal's off bank won't take your MO and tear up the MO. Either way, he was saved from a very expensive mistake.

    --
    I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
  6. Re:scam baiting 9/11 metaphor by MobileTatsu-NJG · · Score: 3, Insightful

    In the scammers case, the boss wouldnt give two shits if someone spent a day dressing up to do what an email asked.

    Making it funny it raises awareness of the scam. Raised awareness of the scam means more resistance to the scam.

    --

    "I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)

  7. Re:OMMFG. by Opportunist · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Erh... you might not have noticed that the fact that this is strung together as a "comic" is not the main focus of the whole ploy. Or, in other words, it's not the comic that is awesome. It's awesome that the person creating it managed to trick scammers into posing in such a way that they could be used for a comic.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  8. Re:racist by Opportunist · · Score: 5, Insightful

    They're creepy and they're belitteling, demeaning and outright insulting pictures. That's part of the idea. Not because these people are black, but because these people are scammers. That they're black is simply quite logically considering they come from a country where most people are.

    I'm quite sure they'd be just as belittling, demeaning and insulting if the scammers were white, yellow or polka dotted red and blue. It's not fun because they're black. It's fun because they tried to trick people out of money and got exposed and publically humiliated for being criminals. Not for being black.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  9. Re:De-peer and 419 disappears by SteveFoerster · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Nigeria has already demonstrated that they shouldn't be online

    I hope someone someday collectively punishes you and everyone you know for things a few people who live near you did so you can get a sense of how fair your suggestion is.

    --
    Space game using normal deck of cards: http://BattleCards.org
  10. Re:419 Scams are named for their law they break by Runaway1956 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Horse Shit.

    There should be no schedule 1 drugs, or schedule 2, or any other schedule. Prohibition gained this country nothing but rum-runners and armed gangs in the 1920's, and the war on drugs has gained us the same thing since the 1940's. Prohibition is for morons, fools, and zealots - and there is no proven method to separate the groups.

    Prohibition has not only killed tens of thousands of American citizens, it is today killing thousands of Mexican citizens, and destroying the poor excuse for a government that they enjoy.

    Legalize and/or decriminalize drugs, let the potheads and crack addicts have all they want. Can't you hear Darwin? "Those fools have nothing to offer society anyway - let them kill themselves!"

    If John Q. wants to blow 10 kilos of cocaine, LET HIM!! It's his right to die from an overdose if that's what he wants to do. Stop wasting resources on keeping him alive, just so we can persecute him for being a coke fiend!

    As for my caffeine and nicotine addictions, I'll deal with them myself, in my own good time. I'll stop smoking some day. Probably the day the doctor pronounces me dead. And, it's none of YOUR business.

    --
    "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br