Tell me about common cons/scams - The Something Awful Forums

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tell me about common cons/scams

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Stick Insect posted:

Got a call from a hidden number, so I sent it to voicemail. A message was left and I was curious.

It was a full minute of ringing tone (the boops you hear when you're calling someone and their phone is ringing). No-one ever picked it up.

This is similar to the only type of unwanted call that I ever get. Maybe once a week I'll get a call from a spoofed number. Answer it and there'll be some tones on the other end; never a human or even a recording of one. When I hang up, I'll get 2-5 more calls from the same number in the next half hour or so, with the same tones on the other end. Same result if I let it go to voicemail. The next time it happens it'll be a different number, but the same result.

# ¿ Nov 5, 2017 16:55

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# ¿ Mar 27, 2023 06:17

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

unknown posted:

this is an automated outbound dialing software that normally connects you to a free agent when you answer. the beeps are it attempting to detect if it called a fax machine by mistake.

in your case there's no agent to talk to you, so it hangs up and puts you in the "call back quickly since you are answering" queue.

That makes sense, but it calls me back quickly even if I don't answer the first call and let it go to voicemail. I can't remember the last time I got an actual human on the other end of a telemarketing call.

# ¿ Nov 5, 2017 18:56

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

LifeSunDeath posted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=channel?UCOkhTr4FqEAWRz2UecVsh4g?videos

Some 16y/o dude fucks with call center scammers using a virtual machine. It's hilarious but after reading that article about these dudes I understand them more and feel bad for them a little. Still this youtube kid is doing gods work.

SA doesn't parse Youtube channel links correctly if you just paste them in; it'll try to make them into video links. Here's the correct link.

# ¿ Aug 13, 2018 11:47

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Holyshoot posted:

And then they get to deal with me telling them vial wretched things to them. Or talking really quiet in my phone then blasting it with a super loud noise. Or spamming the buttons on my phone. I am very petty.

Remember, it's not an obscene phone call if they called you.

# ¿ Sep 22, 2018 00:54

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Platystemon posted:

FBI baristas are forbidden from asking for customers� names.

That's the CIA Starbucks

# ¿ Jan 14, 2019 05:00

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

I bought a new car last week, and instead of trading in my old one, I kept it to sell myself and get more money out of it. I put it up on Craigslist and one of the responses I got sounded legit at first but eventually they asked me to provide a VIN report from one specific website I'd never heard of. That sounded a bit suspicious so I did a little research and apparently scammers now run fake VIN checker websites and try to get car sellers to pay money for fake reports.

# ¿ Feb 11, 2019 18:03

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

jobson groeth posted:

Not sure this is working well for the scammer at all.

IIRC oftentimes they use a unique wallet address for each recipient. Presumably bamhand didn't send them anything, and no one else would have a reason to either.

# ¿ Mar 7, 2019 00:43

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Tubgoat posted:

The AARP contributes money to the American Legislative Exchange Council, a political lobby that LITERALLY submits prefabricated pro-Capital bills to be voted into law by republicans and especially-craven democrats.

Ignoring whether AARP or ALEC are bad or not, the fact that lobbyists have pre-written bills which they then give to sympathetic legislators for them to file is not unique to any lobbying group, issue, or political party.

# ¿ Mar 15, 2019 17:02

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Mister Kingdom posted:

How do they make any money?

The banks/card issuers charge the employers for the service.

Craptacular fucked around with this message at 00:25 on Jul 27, 2019

# ¿ Jul 27, 2019 00:23

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Red Oktober posted:

Here's a little article on carnival games. Nothing especially detailed, but a nice read.

Are carnival games rigged?

That article sure is a lot of words to say "duh of course they are."

# ¿ Sep 4, 2019 16:04

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Carnival games are rigged in the sense that they employ deception to make it seem like the games are easier to win then they actually are. At least lotteries tell you the odds up front.

# ¿ Sep 4, 2019 20:00

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Tubgoat posted:

It's just wonderful that capitalism has turned literally every loving profession into 'salesman.'

Communism is so much better. Everyone gets a bullet in the head and then dumped in a mass grave. No coffin needed!

# ¿ Oct 16, 2019 14:52

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

Proteus Jones posted:

It's just like the bullshit mobile carriers and cable companies do. I'm reminded about how up until about 10-15 years ago everyone was still paying a gov't fee to pay off the Spanish/American War.

That was a tax. Blame Congress for that, not the private companies.

# ¿ Dec 2, 2019 17:08

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

When I was talking to my mom over Thanksgiving, she said she'd gotten several spam phonecalls over the past couple months from someone spoofing my dad's and my sister's cell numbers. I guess there's databases out there that correlate people into their families, so it doesn't seem like it would be difficult to figure out which phone numbers someone likely has in their contacts list, and would therefore be more likely to be answered. But it would seem like if your spouse calls and then instead of them it's some telemarketer wanting to consolidate your debt or whatever, that the telemarketer's success rate would be a lot lower than it would otherwise be, due to the call recipient being extra pissed at the telemarketer for pulling a fast one.

# ¿ Dec 10, 2019 00:41

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# ¿ Mar 27, 2023 06:17

Craptacular: Jul 11, 2004

I don't think it's a secret any more.

# ¿ Jan 1, 2020 18:57

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tell me about common cons/scams