There are thousands of scam artists who have tried to use the Internet to garner quick money from unsuspecting users. African money scams and Ebay accounts where there was no product for sale and savvy con artists took the money and bolted are common tales of woe on the ‘Net. There are stories around the globe about how you can “help” a Nigerian prince transfer some money and make a fortune for a “good” cause.
But in a brilliant reverse of fortune, there have been five cases on 419 scams that have backfired on these less than savory cyberthieves. The reverse scams are so inventive that they sometimes take weeks for the con artists to figure out they have been part of a sting.
The five reverse scams border on hilarious. One scammer became so overwhelmed by the person he was wanting to send him money for a “political” election in Nigeria when what was supposed to be the “victim” took the bait. He started a whole line of emails about hidden, ancient cults, people mysteriously “missing” and ultimately wigging the scammer out to the point where he believed there was a conspiracy going on. Ultimately, the scammer broke of contact with his “victim” citing it was too dangerous to continue and to leave him alone in all Caps goodness. another scammer on Ebay tried to pull a computer scam. As you can see by the photo, he got a little less than he bargained for when the seller realized he was being jerked around.
Scams will continue but at this point, it’s cool to know that some folks are fighting back with hilarious results.