BS: Fun with Spam

Subject: Fun with Spam
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 08:41 AM

This has nothing to do with folk music, Monty Python or that pink stuff that can be deep fried in batter, but maybe we can confuse the Spmmers and have some fun!

I get aroung 10 spams a day inspite of a spam guard. I have tried forwarding them to each other but it rarely works. Any better scams for getting back at the spam senders?

Subject: RE: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST,Jon
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 08:47 AM

This has nothing to do with folk music

So why not use the BS prefix?

Do not try to return spam, etc. They rarely use their own email addresses so at best you will be adding to the junk circulating on the Internet. You could also find you are sending the junk to someone who has had thier email address spoofed by the spammer.

Subject: RE: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST,Danny Mackay
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 08:50 AM

Les - Strangely enough, I've recently tried doing exactly the same. I used "redirect" - don't know if that would work any better. It is possible to get them sent directly to Trash, but that's not quite as satisfying.
Danny

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST,Jon
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 08:55 AM

I think I mentioned it last time this sort of subject came up but I lost the use of email on folkinfo.org and jonbanjo.com for well over a month because of a DOS attack that took advantage of spam being returned to sender.

The attack BTW was severe enough to crash a couple of ISPs and disable email services on others.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 08:56 AM

(most of what I got were bounced "invalid recipient" messages).

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 22 Sep 06 - 09:44 AM

Sorry about the BS.
I also tried returning them to yahoo but yahoo seem to hide rather too well!

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:07 AM

Do they come with an anti -forwarding or re-direct programme? Do people eccer give positive responses? I guess they must or they would not be so common.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:13 AM

A lot of spam messages are simply blanketing a group of possible addresses (there are hundreds every month addressed to info@ for example). By responding to one such message you are simply confirming your address as a valid one, to be focussed on for more spam that follows.

Best to delete them or send straight to trash. Trying to "get your own back" without sniffing software and the knowhow is kicking barefoot at a brick wall.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: The Shambles
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:36 AM

Or for fun - if you were the current Chief of the Mudcat Editing Team you could choose to move it, all unbidden to the following thread Closed threads & deleted posts.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:36 AM

Thanks George, that's very clear. All hope is lost then?

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST,Jon
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:37 AM

Spammers intend you to follow up using a link or perhaps other contact details within the email not reply to the email.

Spammers will use fake email addresses, hijack insecure SMTP servers etc. for the sending of spam. They are better at this game than you will be at tying to trace them by a long way.

Why can't I get it through to you Les? The only people you are likely to affect with "revenge" methods such as returing to sender are innocent parties.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:47 AM

OK, Jon, I surrender!

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: George Papavgeris
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 04:53 AM

Sorry Les - but there it is. While you can get your own back at the paper variety of spam (unsolicited mail: stuff into each other's return envelopes and send - it costs them real money), the electronic kind is best simply ignored. Just as you'd do with any troll trying to hijack a thread for his or her own dubious purposes.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 06:28 AM

Cheers George!

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: The Shambles
Date: 23 Sep 06 - 08:14 PM

Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: An Buachaill Caol Dubh
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 09:48 AM

Well, what I did was this: like many people, I'm sure, I've been informed that I've won loads and loads of money in various International Lotteries, and also been contacted by numerous bank officials from African states with intricate ways of getting unclaimed cash out of the country (in return for my banking details), as well as several putative widows of assassinated African politicians. Now, if you press the "Reply" button, but instead of sending this "Reply" directly you then "Save as a Draft", it is possible both to change the "Address Line" and to alter the content of the original message, which will of course appear below one's own reply. So, having first sent the saved, original message to an E-Mail address I set up specifically for this purpose, and then mucked about with its contents, I have both directed some unwanted messages to the senders of other such unwanted message, AND initiated exchanges (from the false identity) with various bankers and widows. I've even had some of them trying to set up meetings with "me"; in fact, I nearly got married to some widowed African Princess...

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST,Les in Chorlton
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 01:04 PM

An Buachaill Caol Dubh please forgive me I cannot understand this bit, is it your name?

Thank you for reassuring me that fun could be had. But look out, other advice suggests its Tiger by the tale time. I think the spammers are masters and we a but children!

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: GUEST,Jon
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 01:35 PM

Usually, yes Les.

There is a difference with the scammers of course. They want to make contact.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: wysiwyg
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 03:24 PM

My son takes the snail spam he gets ("Here's your approved new credit card") and uses the postpaid envelope to send the mailing back, with a few added bonus items he'd like to dispose of (ashtray contents for example). One of these "bonuses" could be printouts of email spam.

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Andy Jackson
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 04:26 PM

I have been returning postal spam for many years. The way I see it we have a brilliant postal service so lets help them by earning them money with reply paid post.
BUT has anyone else noticed how there are fewer reply paid envelopes enclosed now, did the message get through. I also enlosed a few comp tickets for my festival, hoping they would turn up and I could shout April fool at them, but no show!!

The latest awkward spam is the graphic only, which ca'nt be detected by the message rulkes system.
I've just installed SPAMFIGHTER, seems like the dogs danglies so far.

Andy

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Mr Red
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 05:39 PM

You can't really get at the spammers. The e-mail addresses "From" and "Reply to" are not automatically the source of the spam. In fact they are unlikely to be. If you inspect the "Options" of a message it will reveal the server TCP/IP or some such that it was last seen to go through but not an e-mail adress.

I do list e-mail addresses on my website (in hidden remark form) if I can be sure it relates to the spam. That way their fellow spammers might pick it out and spam the spammers.

The latest wheeze concerns [e-mail] (OK spammers - go for it)
I bought from them and made it a condition of sale that they did not junk mail/e-mail/phone and by selling to me they agreed to my terms. So four spams later and no reply from them (the only opt-out is to recieve 4 spams and then unsubscribe)
They invited me to register on their "community" (read Forum just like this) and I did; my name there is IhateSpam and if you go and look you can see what I "shared" with them.
They will get the message. And tire of it before I do.

As it happens I bought a second pair of the same kind of shoes - not from them of course but at Sidmouth - for cash and, you know, I haven't been spammed from that shop! & I didn't gamble on the fit, colur, comfort ...................

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: jeffp
Date: 24 Sep 06 - 09:56 PM

An Buachaill Caol Dubh, be very careful doing this. I know of a few people who have received physical visits after deliberately wasting the time of "Nigerian" scammers. While the odds are against somebody being in your country, there is a fine possibility of it happening. In one case, a large man appeared at the reception desk of a business being used as a fax drop by a scambaiter (a person who wastes the time of scammers by pretending to be a victim in order to prevent them from scamming real victims).

Take a look at http://www.419eater.com/
for details.

Jeff

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: Mr Red
Date: 25 Sep 06 - 03:08 AM

Well I would hardly go for anyone who didn't spam me and I would not wish to overstate my case in any description, so I do think I am being careful.

As for scambaiting - I leave that to those who know how to set up honeypots.

Subject: RE: BS: Fun with Spam
From: jeffp
Date: 25 Sep 06 - 06:56 AM

There are some amazingly creative people at that site. Some of their work has actually resulted in arrests.