Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

December 2, 2008 9:32:00 AM CST

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Baiters Turn Tables On Scammers

Posted May 2, 07 10:39 AM CDT in Technology,  Arts & Living,  Glossies 

(Newser) – Revenge is a dish best served electronically, Ron Rosenbaum reports in an Atlantic expose on scam-baiting. A community of e-vigilantes has developed elaborate schemes to thwart the ruses of fake Nigerian princes with equally creative faux dupes. Scammers are punished by coaxing them into laborious and embarrassing tasks, like holding humiliating signs or copying out entire novels.

Rosenbaum discusses the moral implications of a virtual eye for an eye: What was once "rough justice" has become "a theater of cruelty." He ponders, "Are we getting a new, somewhat bleaker vision of human nature as we’re freed from . . . face-to-face contact?" One anti-scammer site boasts a membership of 20,000.

Source Atlantic Monthly

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • US Surfers Get Biggest Bite of Spam

    Jul 2, 08 5:35 PM CDT
    US Surfers Get Biggest Bite of Spam Internet users in the US get the most spam, security-software firm McAfee finds after a study. McAfee gave 50 people across 10 developed countries laptops and instructed them to sign up for as much stuff on the internet as possible, and to reply to every spam message. The resulting volume of spam surprised even the researchers, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. More »

  • Surfers Beware: Danger Could Lurk at .hk, .cn

    Jun 4, 08 3:57 PM CDT
    Surfers Beware: Danger Could Lurk at .hk, .cn A study by antivirus software firm McAfee warns Web surfers to be cautious of sites on certain domains, the AP reports, with corner-cutting registration companies often skipping security precautions. The domains .hk, .cn and .info were found to be riskiest. More »

  • Spam, Curse of Web, Turns 30

    May 3, 08 11:06 AM CDT
    Spam, Curse of Web, Turns 30 Spam turns 30 today, but don't break out the champagne just yet: The junk e-mail is as healthy as ever, frustrating tech experts desperate to blow out its candles. It all started on May 3, 1978, with a pitch for a new computer on a government-run precursor to the Internet. Even then, the reaction was fierce, the Washington Post says. More »

  • Google: Spammers Throwing in Virtual Towel

    Nov 29, 07 11:37 AM CST
    Google: Spammers Throwing in Virtual Towel Emailers have been hitting the “Delete” button for years, but spammers may be just now taking the hint, Google says. The tech giant isn’t releasing specifics, but it insists that the number of junk emails sent out has leveled off and could even be dropping for the first time in years, an encouraging sign that spammers may be giving up. More »

  • Don't Take the Bait on Phishing Scams

    Nov 18, 07 12:53 PM CST
    We've all learned to avoid the obvious e-mail scams—but sometimes it's just hard to tell.  MarketWatch gives you some tips from separating the chaff from the wheat:

    1. Know what a phishing scam is: an attempt to con you into supplying ID info, account numbers, names, passwords and so forth.  Be wary.
    2. Do not reply to requests for financial information initiated by someone else.  Legitimate businesses will not ask you supply or "verify" account information.
    More »

  (bookscape.co.uk)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Scammers perform the entire Monty Python dead parrot sketch, on request from a scam-baiter   (419eater (YouTube))

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

Tags

Internet • fraud • computer • email • spam • scam


Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other Home Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser a team of editors and writers culls the most important stories from hundreds of U.S. and international sources and reduces them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. It's the Newser guarantee: we can take any report or column or video and pack what you need to know into 120 words or less. Newser's short-form aggregation, visual format, and unique information tools help you get more of the kind of news you want, in a quicker and more entertaining way. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »