Multiple Personas Question?

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Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2010 5:47 pm

I was just thinking about this earlier, and wanted to get some of your opinions. We've all had the Lads who will bring in extra Lad Characters (whether it be the lawyer, the diplomat, the banker, etc.) to deal with us.

My question is, do you think that this is usually just the same lad using different emails? Or do you think it's actually various lads working together? I realize it probably varies, but what do you think the usual case is? Also, if it is really multiple lads working together, what's the relationship do you think? Are they buddies working as a team, are they part of an organized criminal organization, are they two strangers working together?

Just wanted to throw some of those questions out there to start a discussion.

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2010 5:48 pm

While lads do work together in criminal gangs, usually all the e-mails that you receive are from the same person.

Bruin

Master Baiter Joined: 13 May 2006 Posts: 123

yes, and sometimes they will send e-mails from all characters at similar times making it even more obvious

Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2010 6:47 pm

I have had multiple characters (Refugee, Reverend, Barrister, second Barrister) all in one bait. They all originated from the same IP address which to me indicated all were the same person or they all shared the same computer. Rolling Eyes

419Eater is my life Joined: 22 Jan 2010 Posts: 329

Bait It Up wrote:

Are they buddies working as a team, are they part of an organized criminal organization, are they two strangers working together?

Some lads operate alone, and others operate in more organised criminal gangs. Usually, a boss ("oga") will pay others to work for him. The low-ranking smol bois will collect victims' addresses and send out the original emails. Then the higher-level "guymen" take over the actual scamming.

Normally, the individual "characters" are the same person. See what IP they're coming from, and how far apart they are. Usually, they'll be sent within 30 minutes of each other. If only my bank was that efficient...

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 2:11 am

I figured for the most part they were the same person, but I was curious because some of my lads who use multiple characters in their scam have sent me emails from different IP addresses. The IP addresses are from the same country of origin, but the actual numbers varied slightly. So I was wondering if maybe it was a couple buddies working together (not sure why 1 person couldn't just pretend to be 2 people themselves, but this IS lads we are talking about here)

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 2:25 am

ChoppaOfDolla wrote:

Some lads operate alone, and others operate in more organised criminal gangs. Usually, a boss ("oga") will pay others to work for him. The low-ranking smol bois will collect victims' addresses and send out the original emails. Then the higher-level "guymen" take over the actual scamming.

Spot on.

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 2:49 am

@ Bait It Up,

Your lad could be using an internet cafe and the IPs will be different on different machines. If the lad owns the computer the IP would be consistent.

Just something else to add to your mix of thoughts and replies.

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 4:07 am

@Bait it up. Had a lad went from "Ray" to "Thomas" every mail started
"Hello, how are you, fine I guess." Dead give-away writing style.
"old lady" and "lawyer" SAME IP.

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 11:34 am

I've been tooling around with romance scammers. I often find things go to a predictable pattern and I am passed around from person to person. How fast this proceeds depends upon their sense of urgency.

Some wait a few weeks to put in the requisite whine about sick child, hotel bills, internet bills, air fare and 'form' expenses (these change but somehow seem to resolve along predictable patterns). Some cannot wait past the first contact and swear undying love ... so long as I give them a western union transfer. A few wait months and these can be scary because they seem so convincing. All are criminals of course.

The initial contact might have moderate english skills (not always). Once they feel I am interested then I am often passed to two or three different people - each pretending to be my initial contact. I can tell by their IP but more often I can tell by the way they express themselves and their frequent errors in off script discussions. Of course some play multiple roles (badly) but they seem to stick with the same idiosyncratic style of talking.

I've noticed a few come back as another character (new photos - almost always fake) if they felt their sting soured over a small technicality. I try never to let them know they have been baited because I prefer not to educate them. We don't want to help our lads be better scammers Sad

Keep track of IP's. They might be used in ongoing baits here and are always worth searching.

Have fun ... and good questions Smile

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 10:05 pm

If you are reasonably certain you are dealing with the same lad you can really have some fun. If your lad has personas of "Reverand A" and "Barrister B" you can complain to the Rev that you very frustrated with the Barrister and in your opinion he is an idiot. Keep complaining and chances are the Barrister will be "fired" and replaced. And then confide to the new Barrister that you have your doubts about the Reverend, you don't believe he is a real clergyman and maybe he should use his legal contacts to have him investigated.

Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2010 10:51 pm

If you're fairly sure that the same lad is playing multiple characters, it can be fun to insult and abuse one of them for being incompetent while being all nice and sweet to the other, but complaining that his "business partner" is a complete idiot for not being able to do his job properly (due mostly to the various obstacles you trip him up with Twisted Evil

).
I just find it funny you're heaping all sorts of abuse on him and he's still having to put up with it and pretend to be all nice and professional with the other characters so as to keep his story straight, hehe.

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