# The scammers aren't even trying any more-NOT A PARODY! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 28, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386 "2010-09-28T19:42:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/41 "2010-09-30T00:19:37Z")
> [@FloatyGimpy](#): > > > [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > > > How do you clean your brain after that? > > Q-tip? “You’re supposed to stop when you feel resistance!” ---
**Author:** ![BayouHazard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BayouHazard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BayouHazard)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/42 "2010-09-30T02:37:27Z")
[quote=“Steve\_MB, post:22, topic:555386”] [QUOTE] SteveMB, I have to show my wife that when I get home from work. She’s a giant Tolkien geek. +11ty ---
**Author:** ![Girl\_From\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3da27b/32.png) [@Girl\_From\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Girl_From_Mars)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/43 "2010-09-30T06:09:50Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > I receive an actual honest-to-Og Nigerian scam \*letter \*in an envelope with a postage stamp from South Africa last week. Weird. Emails, sure. Faxes, yup. But snail mail? I received a Nigerian scam\* text message\* the other day - I thought part of the pleasure of the scam was the long drawn-out story of woe. Hard to achieve the same effect in 140 characters. Interestingly there was no phone number attached to the message, only the name “World Bank”. I wonder how they did that. ---
**Author:** ![dhkendall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9adbd/32.png) [@dhkendall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dhkendall)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/44 "2010-09-30T13:34:20Z")
> [@Girl\_From\_Mars](#): > > I received a Nigerian scam\* text message\* the other day - I thought part of the pleasure of the scam was the long drawn-out story of woe. Hard to achieve the same effect in 140 characters. “Nigerian prince. Deposed. Need to move money. I trust you. Send details to this number. God bless you.” Plenty of room left. And funnier if you read the periods as "STOP"s. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/45 "2010-09-30T13:47:49Z")
OK, when I got home last night I checked and my friend’s Facebook page had been removed _entirely_. I found her on LinkedIn and sent her a message, but she hasn’t replied. I called her office, but she isn’t there. I don’t know the names of any of her family members, and she is in another state. She doesn’t seem to have a land line. This is freaking weird. Am I paranoid, or is she in trouble? ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/46 "2010-09-30T14:59:28Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Send that message to these guys: [http://www.scamorama.com/](http://www.scamorama.com/) > Egads, I love that site. Just pick a thread and read it; it’s funnier than hell what they do to those bozos. 😃 Now you’ve done it. I don’t think I’ll ever be productive again… ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/47 "2010-09-30T15:00:42Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > OK, when I got home last night I checked and my friend’s Facebook page had been removed _entirely_. I found her on LinkedIn and sent her a message, but she hasn’t replied. I called her office, but she isn’t there. I don’t know the names of any of her family members, and she is in another state. She doesn’t seem to have a land line. This is freaking weird. Am I paranoid, or is she in trouble? If the person who stole her email password attempted to used the same password on her Facebook account and it didn’t match, Facebook might lock down the account especially if this is attempted from a site far from where she usually posts. I had someone try to hack my Facebook account a couple days ago, and because they made two attempts and were in New Jersey(I live in Portland, Oregon) they locked off my page until I could confirm who I was. If you can contact her, tell her she can straighten it out by emailing them at [support@facebook.com](mailto:support@facebook.com). ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/48 "2010-09-30T19:46:05Z")
Love the Wormtongue take! So, re: the OP, was anyone else thinking, “No, no, your uncle didn’t try to poison you, he sent you on a voyage with the nefarious Rosenkermit and Guildenfozzy . . . and possibly some hyenas.” ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/49 "2010-09-30T20:55:09Z")
> [@dhkendall](#): > > > [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > > > “Miss Queen Gonzo?” What, are spammers just using random name generators now? > > > > And, that is an excellent name for a cat! > > It is, but it’s also, I gather, not an improbable name for a Nigerian. After all their (president? prime minister?) is (was?) Goodluck Jonathan. Real birth name. Well, we all thought he was, but it turned out to just be a big scam. ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2010, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/50 "2010-09-30T21:00:50Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > OK, when I got home last night I checked and my friend’s Facebook page had been removed _entirely_. I found her on LinkedIn and sent her a message, but she hasn’t replied. I called her office, but she isn’t there. I don’t know the names of any of her family members, and she is in another state. She doesn’t seem to have a land line. This is freaking weird. Am I paranoid, or is she in trouble? Maybe your whole relationship with her was one complicated scam designed to direct you to this one big payoff! ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2010, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/51 "2010-10-01T13:49:56Z")
Heh. No, a mutual friend had her work e-mail, where I was able to contact her last night. Her Hotmail account had indeed been hacked, and it has been a nightmare for her. She has a new address and all is well, except for the aggravation. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2010, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386/52 "2010-10-02T03:32:21Z")
if you want to stop these, why not try the other perennial favorites? Tell people that any request for money from someone is actually a VIRUS. And that if they forward your message to 50 people, they’ll get money from Bill Gates or the Goverrnment (whichever they’d prefer). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-scammers-arent-even-trying-any-more-not-a-parody/555386.md?page=2)