Scam baiting
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Scambaiting is a form of Internet vigilantism where the vigilante poses as a potential victim to the scammer in order to waste their time, gather information that will be of use to authorities, or publically humiliate the scammer. It is, in essense, a form of reverse social engineering that may have an altruistic motive or may be motivated by malice. It is primarily used to thwart the 419 Nigerian Advance Fee Scam and can be done either out of a sense of civic duty or as a form of amusement.
Methods Scambaiting is usually done simply by gaining access to an e-mail address that has already been targeted by scammers, which given the prevalience of the spam is not a difficult proposition. Once access is gained the baiter impersonates a person that is receptive to the financial hook that the scammer is using. The objective once the scammer is convinced is to keep the scam going as long as possible, costing the scammer time and energy. Secondary goals include gathering as much information as possible to share with the authorities. Amusement that the baiter may gain from the interaction include fooling the scammer into falling for claims just as ludicrous as one ones that the scammer is using to bilk the victim of money. One baiter, for example convinced the cammer that his name was James T. Kirk since the scammer was unfamiliar with the character from Star Trek.
Nigerian Advance Fee Scam (419 Scam)
The Nigerian Advance Fee Scam has existed for quite a while, but despite many warnings it continues to draw in many victims. In fact, the Financial Crimes Division of the Secret Service receives about 100 telephone calls from victims/potential victims and 300-500 letter pieces of related correspondence per day about this scam.
The Nigerian Advance Fee Scheme also known as "4-1-9" (scam) fraud after the section of the Nigerian penal code which addresses fraud schemes is usually targeted at small and the medium sized businesses, plus charities. This global scam (lately it is seen in Russia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand, also in the US), which involves the receipt of an unwelcome letter claiming to come from somebody who claims to work for the Nigerian Central Bank or from the Nigerian government. The Central Bank of Nigeria actually denies all connection to those who promote this spam scheme. Nigerian money transfer fraud is the other name for Nigerian scam or 419 scam. They are associated in the public mind with Nigeria due to the increase of such confidence tricks from Nigeria since the mid-eighties, although they are often carried out in other African nations, and increasingly from European cities with large Nigerian populations, notably London and Amsterdam.
The operation of scammers is professionally organized in Nigeria, with offices, working fax numbers, and often contacts at government offices. The investor who attempts to research the background of the offer will usually find that all pieces fit perfectly together. If they then agree to the deal, the scammer will send several documents bearing official government stamps; seals etc., and then introduce delays, such as "in order to transmit the money, we need to bribe a bank official. Could you help us with a loan?" or "In order for you to be allowed to be a party to the transaction, you need to have holdings at a Nigerian bank of $100,000 or more”.
