Scamwarners.com is better suited to helping and advising in these situations. 419eater does not advocate "revenge baiting" or continued interactions with scammers by victims. We encourage victims to stop all communications with their scammers. Typically, the scammers will quickly get the message and move on as they cannot afford to waste time on people they think won't pay. If they continue to email, phone, or send sms messages, close or change your accounts.
If you are a victim of a scam, often the first reaction will be, "How do I get my money back?" It's a harsh reality, but the chances of any monetary recovery are infinitesimal. Establishing the true identity of the scammer may be nearly impossible, and even if it is established, they are usually in foreign countries where little may be done.
Beware: Scammers will attempt to scam you again, often using a new identity in what is known as a "Recovery Scam." They will promise to get your money back. Rest assured, their will be no money recovered, but there will be a future fee of some type.
If you think you may be dealing with a scammer, do a bit of research. Internet searches can be a big help if you use it to your advantage.
- If you have their email address, do a search on this to see if they appear on any scammer listing sites. You might try searching the name they have provided, too.
- If you have received long messages or emails, do a search on strange sayings or misspellings. Often, scammers work from scripts.
- If they provide a phone number, do a search on this.
- If the scammer has sent photos, try doing a search at https://images.google.com/ , https://tineye.com/ or https://yandex.com/images/