GIVING EMAIL CON MEN THE RUNAROUND
Weird as it seems, those email solicitations from Nigeria - RE: URGENT BUSINESS PROPOSAL! - persuade Americans to part with hundreds of millions of dollars each year. But the organized crime-backed spammers aren't the only masters of deception. A sophisticated backlash movement is taking shape among creative pranksters. Their goal: out-con the con men, then brag about it online. One such mischief maker, a 43-year-old male systems manager from Ventura, California, used the pseudonym Wendy Willcox to catch a would-be swindler on webcam. Check out these excerpts of their monthlong exchange.
April 2, 2002: Wendy receives a solicitation from someone claiming to be the widow of Mobutu Sese-Seko, dictator of the former Zaire. The missus needs help laundering $144 million. Wendy volunteers, posing as the CEO of Swollenutz Development Corporation. Will they take the bait?
April 8: Bingo! Someone claiming to be Timothy Sese-Seko, the dictator's son, emails Wendy. His family is destitute and his mother has cancer, he writes. They need help. If Wendy provides enough cash to pay off government officials, she'll get 20 percent of $100 million sealed in a Dutch bank. Wendy's reply: Sign me up.
April 9: Timothy zaps over a formal agreement, proposing that Wendy and a representative from his security firm meet in Amsterdam.
April 12: Wow, what a coincidence: One of Swollenutz's projects, a development called the Clap, is in Amsterdam. Wendy can attend to business and make the rendezvous. Timothy buys her story.
April 13: Wendy asks Timothy for a photo, claiming it will allay her fears about dealing with strangers. She sends him one first - it's doctored with chimp teeth and a mullet. Timothy's reply: "Thanks for your picture ... beautiful."
April 23: After a half-dozen more requests, Timothy sends a photo that looks as if it's been clipped from an old newspaper and scanned. "You are a very handsome man. Perhaps you could also meet me in Amsterdam," Wendy suggests. Is she flirting - or flirting with disaster?
April 29: Wendy, Timothy, and some Dutch lawyer named Wesley Stephens have exchanged 40 emails at this point. Finally, they agree that Wendy will meet Timothy's rep in front of an Amsterdam pharmacy on May 1. The spot is visible on a webcam overlooking the street. Wendy's trap is set.
May 1: Gotcha! As Wendy watches the webcam, two suits show up near the pharmacy. They wait in vain for a half hour. Later, Wendy points Timothy to willcoxinfo.bravepages.com/bankwire.htm. The message there: "KISS MY ASS!" He never replies.
START
signal : noise
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Who's the Sucker Now?
Science Centerfolds
The Peacemaker
Crude Awakening
A New Spin on the Wireless Web
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Wired | Tired | Expired
Capture the Wind
