just wondering

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Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 8:28 pm

First of all....hello everyone,i have been lmoa at what your doing Very Happy

I must say i am staggered by how keen these people are to call a phone
number to try to get something out of you(they are very dedicated Wink

)
But i was just wondering if anyone has ever set up a premium rate phone number
and posted it as their own and then got them to call??
Every second they are on the phone to you is pennies in the bank,scam the scammers as it were Twisted Evil

just a thought.

great website btw Cool

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 9:01 pm

Interesting Idea and one that has been tried by fraudsters in a number of contexts. However (I read the stickies) 419eater.com has a policy of not encouraging its members to actually benefit financially from their scambaiting activities as (as i see it) this would essentially blur the line between them and their victims a litle too far. We may waste and obfuscate their resources, but not actually steal them. Profit must never be our motive.

This, however, does not preclude getting them to call any of the countless (and nearly as villainous) premium rate number already in existence. A pricey call from a nigerian mobile, I'll warrant.

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 9:06 pm

ah good point mate,i suppose it would make us no different to them then.
But it would be great to see their faces when the phone bill came through....lol

*** BANNED *** Joined: 02 Jan 2006 Posts: 2021

A good answer to a good question Very Happy

Welcome to you both

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 10:55 pm

Iama Pimp wrote:

But it would be great to see their faces when the phone bill came through....lol

In my experience, they tend to use pay as you go type services, so its more a case of burning up their credit than landing them with a bill.

However, while I don't benefit financially, my baiter number (see "Pimp My Number" in my sig) costs 35p/min from the UK. Add the international calling charges, and connection fees from the scammer's mobile provider, and you're looking at a pretty penny for each call Very Happy

Posted: Sun May 04, 2008 11:26 pm

Nailgunner wrote:

I read the stickies

The admins are just gonna love you! Smile

You're right on the money (as it were) with Eater not allowing that sort of thing. The main reason is that it's against the law to receive money under false pretenses of any kind, and the law won't care that you're only receiving money from a dirtbag criminal. Other than that, yes it would kind of make us not much better than the lads.

@Iama: Your question was still a good one. Never feel bad aboot asking.

Elite Baiter Joined: 02 Jul 2006 Posts: 1702

Apart from those raised alaready issues.

Lads cant or wont call premium numbers, plus premium numbers are regulated, which means theres a big report online with your real details for anyone to read - much too risky in all aspects.

You can make it expensive for them to call by using some great baiter tricks of the trade - randomly during a call hang up - most companies charge a connection fee, that costs a lad money, put a lad on hold while you answer the front door etc etc, or the oldest in the book - get into a deep conversation when they call you and waste all there credit.

Another way is work out WHERE a lad should call you, for example if i use my BT landline to call a friend in usa its 2p per minute, but if that friend was in say Pakistan its 9p per minute, so a quick search online shows there are voicemail for pakistan numbers - which wont cost the lad 2p they will cost the lad 9p - over time you will get numbers found by members in dozens of far off lands and places, join them all.

IN USE: Hi lad, im going to a meeting in mexico for 4 days its urgent, can you FAX me the details as there urgent and ill be away...

Stuff like that all falls into the allowable rules, it just costs the lads more to do what lads like to do best - absolutely nothing.

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 12:48 am

Cheers

I've always been of the opinion that the only stupid questions are the ones that people don't ask.

Phone wastage: many ways to skin a mugu. hang ups, direct to voicemail, dead-call him and force a return call; etc. Of course he may not be familiar with british premium rate numbers, or his provider may not be set up to block them. gay chat anyone? eh. thoughts... plenty of numbers on the walls of the motorway services bogs. are they fair game or "innicent third parties"?

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 4:57 am

Ah, the beloved ITP rule! Unless I'm mistaken, a gay chat line (while it would be funny) would probably involve some third parties who would qualify as innocent. Same thing with the FBI for that matter.

I suppose my method (well, I didn't invent it) of having lads call a payphone might just violate that rule too when I think aboot it. Technically, if my mugu calls a payphone and somebody actually answers and starts talking to him, I guess that would violate the rule. I'm not sure where the line is drawn.

One of the great options available (if you don't want to set up a mobile phone for your lads to call) is the "pimp my number" service available from some of our generous members. They'll take calls from your lads, and often make sure there's maximum waste of precious phone minutes involved! This service, by the way, is even more available to those with a premium membership. Smile

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

A public phone is not by its very nature all that private. No one in the vicinity is under any obligation to pick it up - although it is very tempting to answer a ringing phone - if they do then the exposure is somewhat self induced.

Also, i find it hard understanding most calls, i imagine that average Joe is probably just going to hang up when he hears someone babbling down the phone at him.

Hmm, the gay chat one also seems a bit on the fence to me. Whilst giving your lad the local police station number is not going to be of any use to the police, it will just waste their time and resources. It's the job of premium rate line workers to answer phones and talk to people about meaningless stuff. they are getting paid for their time whether it's a regular client or an irate lad. You never know, they might enjoy the distraction.

Well, that's my 0.02 pence

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 6:07 am

In my early baiting days, I gave as my phone number the contact # of the local brothel... I regret that now, as the 'employees' there should not be involved. I justified it at the time with the reasoning that the brothel was new, almost all local citizens opposed it, and it was only in operation due to some unfortunate legal loopholes. However, they were clearly ITPs, and now I only use Skype and K7.net.

Got some nice responses from the lads, though: "I called that number you gave me and asked for Jen Derbender, and you were very rude" and so on.

I should mention that in North America, most pay phones won't allow incoming calls. So you may be wasting a minor amount of a lad's time, but none of his money.

I took out a K7 account, and recorded a 25-minute greeting (from the Moneygram customer service line, natch). I scoured the web for the most annoying music in existence. I found it, some Chinese music, and Korean music, and "The Song that Never Ends". Strung it together with an audio message... none ever made it through the whole message.

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 6:33 am

Obi-W�n Knievel wrote:

I suppose my method (well, I didn't invent it) of having lads call a payphone might just violate that rule too when I think aboot it. Technically, if my mugu calls a payphone and somebody actually answers and starts talking to him, I guess that would violate the rule. I'm not sure where the line is drawn.

Having a lad call a pay phone is not violating the ITP rules. We used to post a a link to a pay phone database. There is a chance that the phone won't even get answered, but it is a way to stall your lad for a little while.

Posted: Mon May 05, 2008 7:19 am

Nobody yet has mentioned the fact that, apart from anything else, the scumbags are probably paying for the calls with either money stolen from a victim or with funds from a stolen credit card.

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

Well then surely it's a good thing to waste it on pointless phone calls.

If you are saying that as a reason against making them call an expensive line then you could use that argument against every aspect of baiting. Even a straight bait with no trophy is probably paid for with a victims money.