Things I've learned from Spam

[Grace]

When I read the title of this thread I didn't know if you meant

this -

or this -

[Asiel]

We got a special report on the news tonight of a phone scam where someone pretends to notice your computer is slowed down and they are trying to fix it. They are pretending to be a Microsoft tech ...one man got the call and was giving out info on the phone when he realized the questions were not pertinent to any problem he had so he hung up. I had noticed a call kept coming through at the same time each day while I was on the computer but when I checked the number it was way off base so I didn't bother picking it up. Pretty glad I didn't now, and I also never open mail that I don't recognize .

[wombat2u2004]

We got a special report on the news tonight of a phone scam where someone pretends to notice your computer is slowed down and they are trying to fix it. They are pretending to be a Microsoft tech ...one man got the call and was giving out info on the phone when he realized the questions were not pertinent to any problem he had so he hung up. I had noticed a call kept coming through at the same time each day while I was on the computer but when I checked the number it was way off base so I didn't bother picking it up. Pretty glad I didn't now, and I also never open mail that I don't recognize .

That happens here, the calls are from India.

[wombat2u2004]

I responded to one spammer who was selling a p**** enlarger.
For $500 I got a magnifying glass.

[kitten645]

They are getting more blatant too. My friend's elderly father got a phone call that his grandaughter was in a Mexican jail on a DUI. He was asked for a credit card to bail her out because he really didn't want that on her record. For some elderly with mental problems, I'm sure this sickos get plenty. They even gave him a telephone number to call them back. Thankfully the terrified man called his daughter first. There's a special circle in hell for those preying on the elderly, children and animals.

[cassiesmom]

We had a virus at work that looked so legit, it was asking people to click here to run a Microsoft security scan -- we have I think Symantech or McAfee security at work so I knew not to run it, but a lot of others didn't. We had big problems on the system before a mass IS alert went out saying "Do Not Click This Under Any Circumstances".

[smokey the elder]

I got attacked with one of those viruses awhile back; the pop-up one that says "you have 23 viruses, 47 trojans and 10 worms". Yeah, right; off to IT and a good dose of Malwarebytes.

ETA: Also beware of links coming from people you know that don't have a subject or any text in the body of the email. These can be from botnets that hijack your email address.

[sana]

I keep getting emails from matchmakers etc. saying there are singles in my neighborhood and guess what..I live in my family neighborhood (we know nearly EVERYBODY) and they don't do the internet matchmaking I get millions of URGET emails from Ouagadougou,Burkina Faso. Princess blah blah only trusts me and needs my help to deliver $$$ (and loads of it) I learn from these emails that someone out there, in the world...needs a hobby

[Twisterdog]

I responded to one spammer who was selling a p**** enlarger.
For $500 I got a magnifying glass.

LOL! I get those emails too ... too bad I'm a girl!

[smokey the elder]

You can tell these things are scattershot; I get lots of emails for male...ahem...enhancement?

[ToBeEvergreen]

I get those "sexy singles" sort of e-mails in my spam every so often o__o.

[Karen]

You can tell these things are scattershot; I get lots of emails for male...ahem...enhancement?

I do to, and my email address starts with my given name - "Karen" is pretty darned obviously female.

I once summed it up for someone and said, "I get spam for enlarging body parts I don't have, to cure my blading when I've got a headful of hair, ones to shrink certain body parts, cure others and ads for wives I do not want!"