Scambaitng Questionaire

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Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 2:37 am

@thedude - thank you for your explanations. We would like to read final paper, it sounds very interesting. Very Happy

Not quite a Newb Joined: 03 Apr 2008 Posts: 55

Ummm... Could you repeat the question? Laughing

Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 2:56 am

We're doing great, he does the typing and we ask the questions Laughing

Told you to go read a bit first Cool

Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 2:57 am

I would really like to fill out your questionnaire, but it's income tax season and one questionnaire per year is my limit. It comes from hanging around lads too much for too long. Very Happy

Hello I'm New here! Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 4

Thanks newdonym. The link would be appreciated.

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

No problem, here is the link to the topic.
http://forum.419eater.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=131227

Baiting Guru Joined: 03 May 2007 Posts: 18313

So, you're trying to find the reason we scambait and don't want the answer of "to help victims"? If you look around here, you will see many members who are not simply scambaiters. Many members here are also members at aa419.org, Scamwarners, or a variety of other anti-419/fraud sites. The reason a lot of us bait the scammers is because it is one of the tools we have for fighting the scammers.

I'm interpreting your question to be asking "what do we, as baiters, get out of doing it . . . aside from helping victims?" You want the secondary benefits, since there is no absolute altruism?

As Gomer mentioned, the battle of intelligence, will, etc. is something I enjoy also. There's a psychology to it that is intriguing.

Trophy pictures: I have a bunch. I got them from the scammer to see if I could. There's also a level of enjoyment in trying to find a phrase that has comedic value, yet makes sense to the bait.

How much time? I have no idea, really. . . but it's a lot.

I'm curious about your question about the movies. How is that going to support anything in your thesis? You can show a correlation between scambaiters and enjoying the few movies you named, perhaps. . . but you failed to ask about other types of movies. I hope you accept this criticism well: I'd dump that part from your paper so you don't get graded poorly.

And lastly, shame on you for waiting til the last two weeks to do your homework and then trying to get us to do it for you. Wink

Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 6:10 am

i just started doing it because i was bored oneday and now im doing it because it is damn funny messing with them and it makes me laugh. Very Happy

and if noone did it this site wouldnt be here and i wouldnt get to read all the funny posts people write. Very Happy

Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:15 am

Quote:

I have less than two weeks to conclude my research and write the actual paper.

Wow, that takes me back..... Very Happy

Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:42 am

thedude - you have probably stumbled on to a subject that is a little more complex than you may have originally believed it to be.

I started out, before I was member here, having a real irritation with spam and scam mail and also assisted with financial complaints against major institutions.

I am also a member of scamwarners, aa419 and castlecops, and act as a warner for scam mail, though that can be a very draining and mind warping task. Most of what you will see from me is humour, but it is a major omission to disregard the serious side of what we do. The fun and humour is a necessary release.

On a casual glance you only see the glossy surface whilst there is an awful lot going on - whether it be site killing, account reporting, phone killing or resisting attempts by criminals to blow the site into oblivion (as happened recently).

You can't arrive on the site on day one and make a serious attempt to condense what happens and why people do it when you have only the most minimal idea of what we are about.

Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 1:50 pm

Quote:

1) What are your motivations, if any, behind performing the tasks you perform? I�m looking beyond the commonly professed belief that you are protecting potential victims, and hoping to establish hidden motivational forces.

I like winding people up.

Quote:

2) Those who collect trophies of any form beyond the actual transcripts of correspondence, what are your motivations to obtaining these keepsakes? Purely humorous, something more?

I like proving that I can wind people up

Quote:

3) Are you a fan of confidence game genre films? I�m speaking along the lines of contemporary example: The Sting, House of Games, The Grifters, Matchstick Men, The Spanish Prisoner, among others.

The Sting was good, the television series about tricking the con-men, I can't remember the name was also good.

Quote:

4) How much time do you devote on average per week to you hobby of scambaiting?

It varies, depending on what real life allows.

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

@Na na na na na Inspector Gadget: Was it "Hustle"?