unforum

[Rogi Ocnorb]

It's a scam, for sure.
You can have a lot of fun stringing them along. I've only done it once and didn't take it as far as I should, but there are people who string these guys along for months, sometimes creating a seriously funny chain of emails along the way.

http://www.419eater.com/html/links.htm
The pic of the guy on that page was due to the scambaiter having the scammer get a picture of himself with the sign, so he'd know who he was when the met. A meeting, the scambaiter never had any intention of making. Sometimes, they have them hold a sign with the scambaiters "name" on it like, "Iama Wayne Kerr"

One guy even had garbage drop shipped to the scammer at their own expense(Packed in a broken washing machine).

If you wanted to develop this, into a fullblown scambaiting campaign, We could all provide input.

EDIT:
Don't even consider actually meeting with these people, though. There have been a few kidnappings, robberies and even deaths of people taken in by the scammers.

[Ekplixi]

I've just been hit with what I do believe is an ARG trailhead. I got the following message:

electrohat4000: i say, old bean, have you seen my hat?
electrohat4000: Words are an old and clumsy substitute... ultimately necessary, but they rarely capture the essence of things.
kronecodow: Hello?
kronecodow: Who are you?
kronecodow: hello???

In the buddy info of this guy, I saw:

mess with the best, die like the rest

http://www.ricedoutyugo.com/hat/

(530) 678-4931

The website is kind of retarded, but it could be an ARG. I'm a little too scared to call the number, but usually ARGs begin with a phone number that leads you on to more clues. Anyway, the guy definitely found me from back in the days when I played qu13e.

I did just call the number, but couldn't understand what was being said. EDIT: Second time around: it's just a computerized voice saying "I ay old bean, have you seen my hat?"

What do you think?

[chippy]

LOL heres the recording - im a sucker for ringing up numbers
googling for "www.ricedoutyugo.com" brings out some other funny stuff... looks like its been going around for a few months at least. great stuff, but looks like a bit of annoying fun?

[jadex]

Found this in my inbox..

"I replied, I, Miss Mills. I have done it. Behold the destroyer.
under such circumstances. I say it aint likely, in a man who - or words to that effect - and hid my face from the light, in the
occasion that I was in expectation of such an event. While I had been away from home lately, Traddles had called twice
of setting Betsey up as a scarecrow, for if I ever saw her in the net; and as she worked away with those Chinese chopsticks of
My dear old Traddles has tried his hand at the same pursuit, but it I had alluded to her in the letter, I respect that ladys
free to confess that if it could be done, it might be well, but - and opened a certain drawer; then, suddenly bethought himself of
finding himself as comfortable as he expected, or being a little but they are always being hungry and discontented somewhere.
happy as the week was long. I occasionally wished I could venture From India? said the Doctor. Yes. Mr. Jack Maldon couldnt
its former self - having been divested of a variety of tell her that before she marries my boy, Ill come and make your
from one of us to the other, and then putting up her pretty lips to strange eyes, quite unable to endure their hungry lustre.
steadfast in a purpose of saving money for Emilys sake, when she brought out, to our great amazement, by a piquet of his companions"

Sent from fprissy9SPLATalux4.cnet.att.com

What the heck could this be?

[MageSteff]

[Fosforix]

[Dravos]

Erm, i dont think i should be getting ARG as I havent joined any, but on the offchance this is something.

I don't normally get something like this with links that dont point to some crap, but this points to a real Yahoo group. And it has White words, possibly a hidden message. No idea

Is there anyone that could possibly hit me up on msn sometime to explain this whole ARG thing and how I can get more involved?

( jamie (at) dravos (dot) com ) - ta

Ok here is the email from (Moses Weaver [Streaming_quotes_bureau@gmail.com]), red highlighted words are the ones hidden, placed at the end and underneath every paragraph.

[curiouswife]

I got an email from Coil Tubing this morning as well, but from a Tim Weatherspoon, and my hidden words are different. But its to a ficticious name at my work address which gets a lot of junk mail, and certainly isn't from anyone who knows anything about us.

Their website mentions Small Caps, and I wonder if its a plea for investment, - if its not just a total scam.

[MageSteff]

[Dravos]

True, just i normally see those words at the end of the message, and they arent hidden. I dont see how changing their colour would make any difference to an email parser.

Anyway, probably is junk

[yanka]

Ahem, I'm afraid this is quickly going to cause me a great deal of embarrassment, but I'm putting this here anyway because... it's just so frigging weird.

Yesterday someone left a message on my cell's voicemail. The number it came from is a valid UK number (I'm in California), and, um... the guy at that number knows nothing about me or my cell phone, so I'm not going to include it here, but it's kinda weird-looking - strings of 4s, 6s, and 7s. Looks rather spoofed, which only adds to the weirdness, heh.

I figure it's either a prank (in which case spoofing would make sense) or an accident (like, someone sat on their phone and it randomly dialed my number while some movie or something was running in the background), but... er... well, it's still just too weird. And kinda creepy. But mostly wierd

As a... reflective, I guess... aside: you know, three years ago I wouldn't have even given it a second thought before erasing it. Three years of ARGing = anything slightly out of the ordinary might be a KLOO (hah! to what?!) Gah! Damn you, krystynsleepdeprivation!

[Puppy_Zwolle]

[xero-mahanamatashi]

After listening to it, I suggest

[?] Of course, not to mention the fine work you did on my [?]. She was not very co-operative and just refused to listen, but she was a twisted old girl so...Unfortunately, we lost track of you once you set out to sea. Both Tyler and I are not very comfortable with water and so there was no chance of sending a boat after you. However, with your good fortune and shall we say [intriguing] [?] I would expect no less from a bright and industrious [?] as yourself. So give me what you have and let us be done with this [nasty?]. I will let you friends go, my [?], go on a little trip

[serena]

I got this email, that makes it look like it was sent from myself to my own email address, which I know isn't hard, but still, that's what made it caught my eye. And of course my spam filter didn't catch it, which is another reason why I'm curious to what this email is, if it's not spam.

The subject is simply - 57657

and the body of the email is - 969


This is the original view of the email:

[rowan]

It's spam. Several people in #uf got them, including someone at their work email address (which even they don't know) and someone else's daughter. So unless the PMs are now stalking people, I'm pretty sure we can say it's just a mass phishing exercise for new email addresses.