Have you every strung a scammer along on purpose?

[Shefliesonherownwings]

Just been binge watching scam interceptors on the BBC and the episode I just finished showed a couple of people deliberately stringing scammers along to waste their time and stop them contacting anyone else. These were phone and online scammers. I got a lot of satisfaction out of listening to the scammers getting annoyed and knowing they were wasting their time.

I normally hang up the phone straight away if I get one of these calls and ignore messages about ‘fraudulent’ activity in on my account but I wondered if anyone had deliberately strung these scumbags along just to waste their time deliberately?

Yes, numerous times.
One was trying to scam my Nan and I played a long for ages then gave them a mouthful and ended the call.

They called me back and gave me a mouthful back 😂😂

No but fair play to anyone who does as some of these scams are awful, really cruel

That’s crazy. They’re the ones trying to scam people and they have the audacity to ring you back and give you a mouthful. What did they say??

I haven't, but I enjoy seeing stories of people doing it. My favourite one is a guy who managed to con a scammer into writing out a Harry Potter book by hand, the scammer even roped in some friends to help him 🤣🤣 it was brilliant!

Yep, when I get cold called about the car accident I ssupposedly had, I like to say if was very serious.
So.serious that I actually died...

Once or twice I've kept them talking and going round in circles but I can't be arsed with that anymore.
Now, as soon as hear "this is X from technology solutions about your internet" or whatever … phone goes straight down without a further word.

I once started singing to a scammer. Yes, id had more than a few glasses of wine. And no, I cannot sing. My finale was Delila, so our of tune no same person would listen to it.

In their defence, they were giggling before they put the phone down.

I got a phone call and was told that I had a sum of money waiting for me following a car accident. I was told that they were a firm of solicitors.

I had actually been involved in a minor accident but it was a few years ago and all money I was due had been paid out.

So I asked which firm and he gave me some name. I strung him along a bit and said how marvellous it was. I then said that I would just confirm his firm's registration with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

He called me a fucking bitch and hung up!

I quite enjoy fucking with scammers when I have the time.

yes once when i was at home waiting hours for a delivery and bored....phone call about huge money....then email follow up...nigerian...i had a western union form with me as sometimes send cash to a relative abroad so i filled it in for $100....told him i sent it etc...he went to the office and rang me back...told me no cash etc...so i told him i did it again....went to get cash and nothing....rang me back and called me a fucker...!!

Apparently in NZ we developed chat bots designed exactly for this purpose:

www.theguardian.com/world/2017/nov/10/new-zealand-chatbots-artificial-intelligence-scam-conversations

Yes, my dad used to do it and I learned the art from him. He’s kept them on the line for 20-30 minutes on occasion. Not necessarily scammers but cold callers too.

My newest one is to just say ‘I’ll go and get her…’ when they ask for me then wander off. Usually takes 1-2 mins before they hang up, and I figure at least they’re not bothering someone else in that time.

Not scammers but I did talk to a salesperson for ages who was trying to sell me a conservatory.
He went in to loads of detail about the specifications and what they could offer. After about 20 minutes I said this all sounds great and I just had one more question which was how would they fit it to my second floor flat.

Yes...a woman called me to tell me my computer had a virus. I pretended to be very upset and asked her for help. I got more and more emotional and worried until she got so fed up she asked me why I was so dramatic and hung up!

Yes I do it every time. When they ask a question I will say "oh hold on I'll look it up" then I just quietly lay the phone down and never go back to it. Or I will pretend to follow instructions but be exceedingly dim.

Yes. Frequently although I’ve got board of it now and passed the baton to my middle son. I’ve had a very long conversation about the accident I was in that had killed me …I’m a ghost don’t you know Mr Scammer. I especially used to like pretending I couldn’t hear them ‘hello, hello? Is there someone there? Hello I can’t hear you?’ I found this particularly satisfying as it has a very high hang up rate. Of late my son answers and says in a very creepy voice either ‘I’m
behind you’ or ‘ I’m under your bed’ which I’m ridiculously proud of and which has me in hysterics… love fucking with them when I have a spare 5 minutes on my hands.

Yep, about an accident I’d had and was due money. I asked them which accident as I’d had several, went though lots of details before they finally realised and called me a bitch

Yeah, my DH is a computer programmer and works in interactive TV, so when a scammer phoned up pretending to be from Sky DH rumbled him quite quickly and put him on speaker so we could all hear him stringing the guy along.

After about half an hour of bullshit, the guy realised he was being mugged off, so pleasantly and politely recommended that my DH "kindly go and jump in a lake, Sir". Very funny in an Indian accent.

Yeah, had one of the “mum, I’ve lost my phone, here’s my new number” whatsapp one’s quite recently. Kept him going for quite a while with long winded stories about “Harrys” many accidents, including one with a coat hanger resulting in bladder problems, and another involving changing a lightbulb naked, and falling into a basket of carrots. Was quite disappointed when he disappeared, had loads of stuff lined up to send him.

There are youtube videos of people stringing them along.
They go crazy

Yes all the time on Facebook! Usually fake romance scammers from Nigeria who uses photos of older white guys with beards and they say they work on oil rigs or are doctors or in the military!

I figure if they are talking to me, it is taking up their time from talking to someone who is vulnerable!

When I get bored I laugh at them and show them them who’s photos they have stolen and I report to Facebook.

Oh yes

It’s funny how my perfectly competent new fast computer mysteriously crashes and ages ten years and takes forever be rebooted several times just as I get one of these calls.

I listen to them for a bit then say: Does your mother know what you do for a living?

When DS was tiny I used to ask them to speak to my financial advisor, then hand the phone to him so he could blether non-stop at them about trains or scream CALL FIREMAN SAM! NEENAANEENAANEENAA... down the phone at them. Either that or say 'ooh, just give me two minutes' and put the phone down on the side while I sat down with a cup of tea.

For the 'your accident wasn't your fault' ones I keep them going for as long as possible and eventually say I'm delighted they don't think I'm to blame but they're probably being too generous. I mean, I was hammered - I 100% should not have been driving that bus/taxi/tractor/combine harvester...

One tried OLD dating, his sob story about money, I told him, it was a lie, and that he’d never give me money.
Told him I wasn’t stupid and didn’t give money to strangers