Is someone trying to scam you?

Maybe it’s a Nigerian prince email scam or a tech support scam. Or it might be a scrap yard con. Whatever it is, you can always try to flip the script and scam the scammer.

Here are seven ways to get your revenge!

1. Give the Scammer Access to a Virtual Machine

We’ve all probably encountered a tech support scammer before. You get a call from someone who claims to be from Microsoft, and they suggest that your computer has been “hacked.” They will then get you to install something like TeamViewer, giving them full access to your computer system.

A great way to respond to this kind of scam is to waste the scammer’s time as much as possible. One of the best ways you can do this is by setting up a virtual machine on your computer.

A virtual machine is basically a computer emulated within your computer. A scammer who has access to your virtual machine can’t access your actual computer. Once you’ve had your fun, you can simply power the virtual machine down.

There are various ways you can have some fun with a virtual machine. You could string the scammer along, pretending to be someone who isn’t very computer literate. Some people have kept these scammers on the line for hours.

Another thing you could do is trick the scammer into running a virus on his own computer. This is only recommended if you really know what you’re doing.

A sure way to do this is to fill a zip folder with viruses and leave it conspicuously on the desktop of your virtual machine. Label it something like “bank details.” When the scammer inevitably opens the files, you’ll be able to hear their reaction as hell breaks loose.

2. Waste Their Time with an AI Bot

There are so many email scammers out there, but so little time.

If you want to mess with scammers with as little effort as possible, consider using an AI. Bots, such as Re:Scam, can waste the time of hundreds of email scammers at once.

If you want to get truly hilarious results, you need to put the time in yourself. But if you’re looking for a low effort way to get some revenge, an AI bot is a great idea.

The Re:Scam will constantly ask question after question to the scammer. Since the scammer thinks you’ve taken the bait, they will tentatively answer all of the bot’s questions.

Eventually, they’ll realize something is up. But hopefully, by then, they’ll have wasted a significant amount of their time.

3. Get Creative with Scammers

Are you someone who has too much time on their hands? The sky is the limit when it comes to scam baiting.

Check out 419 Eater to see some of the most hilarious scam baits ever done. Users on this site have tricked scammers in some very funny ways.

It’s not enough for these people just to waste scammers’ time; it also has to be incredibly funny. The scam baiters at 419 Eater have had some fantastic results flipping the script on scammers.

For example, one email scammer was tricked into carving a wooden replica of a Commodore 64 computer. Another one was tricked into writing out the Harry Potter books by hand.

Remember the scrap yard scam from earlier? If you want some great inspiration for getting revenge on those scammers, then check out 419 Eater.

4. Use Fake Identities

If you really want to string a scammer along, you need to have some fake identities. Set up some new emails and create fake personas. Take care not to use anyone’s real information.

If you need to give addresses, make something up that sounds plausible, but isn’t real. For example, use a real street but with a number that doesn’t exist.

For maximum entertainment, these personas should be teetering on the edge of believability.

You could start off with all of the personas you’re planning to use “premade,” or you could just make up new personas on the fly as and when they’re needed. The more fake identities you have, the longer you can keep the scammer wasting their time.

Remember to never use any information that could conceivably lead back to you.

5. Convince Them to Travel

A great way to waste a scammer’s time is to convince them to travel to a fake meeting. Bonus points if it’s a location that’s hard to get to!

It’ll be difficult to convince a scammer to travel without giving any money first, but if you construct a convincing scenario, it can be done. When the scammer is at the location, you can reveal that they’ve been tricked. You could also try to make excuses and keep the scam going.

6. Make Them Waste Money on International Calls

Often, scammers are based in places like Nigeria. If you can convince them to make some international calls, you can quickly waste their money.

Use burner phones or Google voice accounts rather than your real number. You could even use voice changer software to take on different personas.

7. Waste as Much as Their Time as Possible

Your main aim when scam baiting should be to waste as much of the scammer’s time as possible.

While it’s certainly possible to con scammers out of money, this should never be your primary objective. If you do that, it could land you in legal trouble. Even if you were baiting scammers, the law will see you as a scammer too.

As long as you’re wasting a scammer’s time, they can’t con anyone else. Keep them on the hook for as long as possible. You just might be saving others from getting tricked.

Stay Safe

When dealing with a scammer, never do anything that would compromise your own identity. Scammers are criminals, and they may well be dangerous people. Never meet in person with them and always use a fake persona.

One final point. If you manage to get some hilarious results, make sure you share it with the rest of the Internet!

Need some more useful tips? Then read our blog!