Most of us, especially young people, might think we're immune to online frauds and scams. However, according to data from NatWest, people aged 18-34 were the main targets of scams, as 55% say they have been approached by scammers in the last 12 months.
Nobody likes scammers, so, most of us cheer when we see a good scammer takedown. The Scammer Payback subreddit is a place where scammers get baited and burned so bad they're usually left speechless. Here we have for you the most hilarious texts where scammers finally met their match and were trolled, ridiculed, and utterly destroyed.
This post may include affiliate links.
Sometimes I Feel Sorry For Them
And if the scammer did quit, it might have changed countless others too that didnt then become victims. Multiple winners all round!
Load More Replies...Heartbreaking. F*ck the bully class who exploit fellow human beings to enrich themselves
ONLY TRYING TO HELP WHO WANT TO BE HELP. Have you lose your money on any Trading platform. now it can be recovered with the help of MRS Caroline Ross an recovery expat in the highest, you can contact her with. Email: carolineross 651 @ gmail . com
Take it or leave it this Group is just a page created for scammers to keep scamming and recommending victims to yet another scam, heads up people take all your complaints and recovery requests to Mrs Caroline Ross she is the only solution in getting your loss Money back from any trading platform with she you will get a professional guideline. I was also a victim twice. She helped me recover all my money. Good luck to those who listened. WhatsApp: +447351945412 Email: carolineross 651 @ gmail . com
My “New Job” Is Working Out
The Person Who Expertly Hit A Scammer With A "Your Mom" Joke
One time I said, "How did you get this number? We're in the Witness Protection program." He was laughing as he hung up.
One asked me if there was anything I needed to work and I said 'a spoon' they said for what? I said to eat my whole a*s
I read this in Darrell Hammond's Sean Connery impression voice
The Scammer Payback subreddit is the community for the audience and fans of the American YouTuber and streamer Pierogi. The YouTube channel has 7.89M subscribers and features the creator baiting phone and online scams.
Pierogi is a former cybersecurity professional who was inspired to start his career on YouTube and Twitch after watching YouTube videos. At first, his channel featured videos of him prank calling scammers to waste their time. But, as time went by, the project grew into something more serious.
Couldn’t Help Myself
I laughed so hard and now my students want to know what's so funny
Load More Replies...Nigerian Scammer
This Is Mia
This would work better if the name was Maya, seeing as that's not how you pronounce Mia
The "Mia who (hoo), mia he etc" is part of a song called Dragostea din tei. If you'll listen to the first few seconds, you will get it
Load More Replies...In 2022, Pierogi and his team set up a "People's Call Center," the opposite of a scam call center. The team called internet scammers for a week, pretending to be victims and wasting their time, preventing other people from getting scammed.
As the creator told FOX 7, he would usually do this by himself. "It was kind of good versus evil, the anti-scam call center versus the scam call center," Pierogi explained. "There's going to be evil in this world. And... I think that for every kind of evil thing that's going on, there's a positive as well."
The Person Who Let A Scammer Know They Might Want To Double-Check Their Scams
I corrected one of those Norton email scams on the way they wrote their phone numbers… 🤣
Could be by design. People that do not stumble over obvious mistakes are more likely to fall for the scam going forward
Are they really still using a person to write those messages at your location ? ;)
Load More Replies...Remember - poor spelling and grammar in a scam communication is a filtering device. Those who respond are already half on-the-hook if they don't catch the obvious errors, and thus more worth the time investment to try to close the con.
Don't correct them! Let them keep misspelling words so we know who they are
So Sad
Correct response is "Oh dear. How sad. Never mind" a la Sergeant Major Williams
Take it or leave it this Group is just a page created for scammers to keep scamming and recommending victims to yet another scam, heads up people take all your complaints and recovery requests to Mrs Caroline Ross she is the only solution in getting your loss Money back from any trading platform with she you will get a professional guideline. I was also a victim twice. She helped me recover all my money. Good luck to those who listened. WhatsApp: +447351945412 Email: carolineross 651 @ gmail . com
Omg Is This What I Think It Is
Take it or leave it this Group is just a page created for scammers to keep scamming and recommending victims to yet another scam, heads up people take all your complaints and recovery requests to Mrs Caroline Ross she is the only solution in getting your loss Money back from any trading platform with she you will get a professional guideline. I was also a victim twice. She helped me recover all my money. Good luck to those who listened. WhatsApp: +447351945412 Email: carolineross 651 @ gmail . com
Pierogi isn't just some Internet vigilante; he's not against working with the government. Recently, as he's told TIME, he started feeding federal authorities information about scam rings. "All different sorts of agencies have knocked on my door," he said.
I Guess I Came On Too Strong
Doesn't seem to matter what you say. They still stick to their scripts.
This is something I would do. I've actually done something similar, to someone, in person. Ah, the look in their eyes.
How Am I Doing Lmfao
Gonna start typing all bored pandas censor words backwards. Testing: kcuf yeah!
There Was An Attempt
The creator also draws attention to the fact that it can be hard to put scammers behind bars. When people seek justice, often authorities of multiple countries have to be involved. Also, you'd need victims who would be willing to testify, which doesn't happen often. "We're making it harder for the scammers, but they're also getting smarter," Pierogi told TIME. "It's this cat-and-mouse game."
First Attempt And I Have No Self Control
Had To Be Reminded
scammers include links in these always so this scammer screwed up and got caught
Load More Replies...Wouldn't the account be cancelled, not limited? The amount of typos these scammers type baffles me.
This Is How I Deal With These Assholes
Here's the text if anyone needs it for "personal use" Thanks for joining "Daily Wonders"! ✨🤩 $299.95 has been billed to your wireless account for a non-refundable yearly subscription. Get ready for a new fun fact each day! 🤑 Here's your first fun fact to get things rolling: Receiving a new fact each day means you'll know 365 new facts in a year! Enjoy your daily dose of wonder 🏆
Oh, now that's comedy GOLD!! I'm definitely using that one. I've used "Congratulations, you've been successfully enrolled to (Pornhub logo here) exclusive Pro account. You card has successfully been charged $399.00 for an annual subscription, It appear on your statement as **Nutfux** next billing cycle. I have been sworn at, told to CANCEL imm, everything under the sun...then they NEVER text back!!! Works every time. I'm going to use yours, too!!
Load More Replies...What is it exactly that scambaiters like Pierogi do? Aside from wasting their time and holding up the phone lines, scambaiters also expose their personal information or even target them with cyberattacks. Another popular streamer and scambaiter Kitboga told NPR how he's sometimes able to get bank account details, cryptocurrency wallet addresses, and other info out of scammers.
Short And Sweet…
I would have added " you scammers sure do get around. He's very upset!"
Too Hard Too Fast?
Wanna Date?
LMAO they weren't ready for commitment or they entered the WRONG dating site! LOL
Scambaiters usually assume some other persona when talking to scammers. For Kitboga, one of their names is an elderly woman, Edna, inspired by his grandmother. One of the reasons the streamer began scambaiting on his channel was because his grandmother fell victim to fraudsters: he found out she was paying for multiple internet and cable packages.
Not In The Mood Today… LOL
out of context but ur fur baby (ur prof pic) is so cute and happy!!!!!
Load More Replies...Take it or leave it this Group is just a page created for scammers to keep scamming and recommending victims to yet another scam, heads up people take all your complaints and recovery requests to Mrs Caroline Ross she is the only solution in getting your loss Money back from any trading platform with she you will get a professional guideline. I was also a victim twice. She helped me recover all my money. Good luck to those who listened. WhatsApp: +447351945412 Email: carolineross 651 @ gmail . com
Simple But Sweet
The hard thing to buy into is that someone who is in cyber security is using Cricket. I was with them until my identity got stolen.
oof! they're battery is down to 1% How'd they manage to even chat? LOL
guy tried to scam someone who finds these kinds of ppl for a living
Load More Replies...I Saw Someone Do This 1 Trick. So I Wanted To See
I love it. Don't forget to add the nevermind at the end
Load More Replies...I'm sorry, I'm hard of hearing, can you type louder, please?
I heard Stone Cold Steve Austin.eaxh time...and against my will. I hated his character and "what" after everything, which fans still do almost 30 years later! But I have to give credit where credit is due. "What?"
Kitboga then realized he could manipulate the scammers under the guise of an older woman. "The initial drive or mission was, if I spent 10 minutes on the phone, then that was 10 minutes that that scammer wasn't talking to my grandma or your grandma," he explained to NPR.
The Person Who Cursed A Scammer With Dark, Dark Magic
Do you ever think the devil gets scam calls cause his Nokia still works well in hell?
I'd ask him, but that sumbitch stopped taking my calls.
Load More Replies...g̴̭͚̦̹̓ō̷̦̫̲͔͓̺̖͊̅͛̾̑̓̒̆̍͠ ̷̱̻̖͚̹͚̺̇͋̃́̏̏́͐͌͐͗̉̀̕͠ả̵̛͍̃̏̓́͑̾̅̈͊ŵ̷̧̤̜̰̘̭̯̝͙͖̯̜̱̣̗̓̂̈́͂̽̃̆̾̎̄̈́̌̀͐͠ͅͅą̸̧̰̰̙̹̩̿͆̔̃͌͒͋͌̋͂̋͗y̷̡̺̣̝͉͙̦̒͋̐̌͘͘
ņ̴͈̠̹͉̥̤̙̀͆̿̅̀̎̉̊͒̚̕͝͝͝ò̵̡̙̜̣̱͎̟̬͙̮͕̙̤̃̑̿̒͜,̸̜̙̣͙͖̯̇̀͂͌͒̀̄̆͛̔͑̚͠ͅ ̴̢̩͙̲̠͕͕̮̳̹̼̼̣̼̟̣́̐̆́͂́̈́̍̒̄͝y̴̧͉̼͔̯͚̠̫̦͓̬̘̟͍͆͐̄͆͐ơ̷̼̮͉̄̑̀̀̀̽͛̅͊̕͠ṷ̵͍͖̦̘̦͓̻̜͚͒̇̽̈́̒̃͒̊̈́̇͘̚̚ ̷̨̛̛̥̬̟̙̬͋͌̓́́̐̌̒̈́̀̕̚g̷̡͕͚͈̹̪͓̤̰̬͈͈̰͔͊̊̐͝͠͠ȏ̵̬͔̝̑̋͒̈͠ ̵̝͔̜̇̋̈́̐͆̈́̇̈́͝͠͠͝ä̴̢̮͚̙̘́͒͆̀̇̓̉͠w̴̥͙̻̫̉̍͛̄͑̽̋̂̀̽̚͜͝ả̸͔͕̪̬͓̠͓̯ý̶̭͂̾͒͛́́́̑̈́͋͝
Load More Replies...It’s Become My Favorite Thing To Do
I do that to scam texts. It's always something weird like the fisting or I ask if they are the clinic and if they have my STI results or if they determined the strange rash on my butt. It works every time!!! Hahaha 😂
Load More Replies..."Mom smokes in the car. Jesus is okay with it, but don't tell Dad".
Too Harsh
its probably true. alot of scam places their workers r forced to work thru threats or theyve been kidnapped to work. others r just jerks who got nothing better to do.
Load More Replies...Another scambaiter Jim Browning hacks into scammers' computers and CCTV cameras and shows his viewers how the fraudsters are reacting to the baiting in real time. In one operation together with the Australian ABC News, he gained access to a scammer's computer and shared the screen with the journalists as the scam of an Australian man took place.
Hope I Did It Right
The Person Who Tried To Scam Someone With A Truly Special Name
Not Quite Payback But Felt Good
I don't get this scam. They send you a random 6 digit number - what's the scam?
They are trying to create an account linked to the targets phone number, but need the verification to finish setting up. The account will be used for identity theft of the target, or just to create a new account for scamming others, which leads back to the wrong person when traced.
Load More Replies...These ones were fun for me for a while, where I was near Dubbo was no where near people or a town on a farm, so I gave them the address 😂 and they’d always message back with ‘oh wow that’s close/ or an easy location for my brother/friend with a truck to pick up’ 😂 (if anyone was dumb enough to come, it was their own fault as farmers don’t like trespassing, especially rural ones with little people contact 😂
They sign up for something using your phone number. The code is verification for signing up. Then your number is linked to future scams.
After the reporters reached out to the man and warned him about a possible scam, the man unfortunately didn't believe them. He supposed that ABC News were the scammers. '"A lot of the time the scammers build up a rapport with their victims," Browning explained. "I've seen scammers completely turn this around, even though I've warned the victim that the person you're speaking to is a scammer."
Straight To The Point
Glad To See The FBI Has Begun Stepping In On Scammers
The best part is they don't realise that Toronto is in Canada and there is no FBI here.
That's exactly what the FBI wants you to think.
Load More Replies...Just them the whole time realizing they have no jurisdiction and the RCMP and OPP letting them come on ride alongs
Load More Replies...Take it or leave it this Group is just a page created for scammers to keep scamming and recommending victims to yet another scam, heads up people take all your complaints and recovery requests to Mrs Caroline Ross she is the only solution in getting your loss Money back from any trading platform with she you will get a professional guideline. I was also a victim twice. She helped me recover all my money. Good luck to those who listened. WhatsApp: +447351945412 Email: carolineross 651 @ gmail . com
Toronto FBI??? Canada is now a state??? Do they know??/s
Bored With Them Now So I Just Do This
Scambaiting isn't always successful, but it is, however, almost always entertaining. Which of these texts made you laugh the most, Pandas? Do you have any similar scammer takedowns to share from your own experience? Don't hesitate and do so in the comments! And, if you want to see more scammers getting owned, check out our other posts here and here!
I’m A Lil New To This
Don't lie to me Aisha! Last time it turned into a Satanic cult sacrifice of the intern followed by the barbecue of his body before the cannibal feast. Of course I'm up for it but you're doing the talking this time when the police arrive
The Person Who Was Just Trying To Give A Scammer A Deal
The Person Who Gave A Scammer Detailed Instructions The Specifics Of Their Home
That's that lovely house in Texas. The family is a bit weird. The big son is pretty nifty with a chainsaw. The bbq they make can vary in taste person to person, but is to die for.
The funny thing is that that house is now a restaurant. The jokes pretty much write themselves, don't they?
Load More Replies...Omg They Sent It Again
How My Buddy Deals With Scams
I don't understand who that scam would work on? Are there women waiting for random strangers to tell them their favorite sex positions? And that link. It's basically them trilling the keyboard a few times, the adding an "18" at the end.
Straight To The Point
Are You Ready?
If you look at the email her name is actually "Ovivia"
Load More Replies...April Fools
One of those replies was actually correct! My name is April you fool! Unusual middle name but whatever!
The Person Who Let A Scammer Know They Already Have Plans Tomorrow
First Time, How I Do?
Time to open that champagne bottle I saved for this...
Load More Replies...Maybe it's legit. Could be BP looking for a censor since theirs seemingly quit.
Sick Of These Motherfuckers, Been Texting Me For 4 Years… Im Not Trent!!!
I Messed It Up. Make Fun Of Me
Got ‘Em
Meh, I have a severe mental health condition and I'd absolutely play into that with a scammer.
Load More Replies...Bro Got A Little Upset
These are amusing and while sometimes I consider doing if myself, I don't because a) don't want to confirm my number works and b) I think a lot more are automated these days
Just memorize a few different languages - one line each. (Japanese: "Moshi Moshi. French: "Bonjour". Spanish: Hola, Como Esta?" German: "Guten Tag". Etc...) Then answer and keep switching up. Scammers hang up and remove your name from their list. If it's someone legitimate, they will ask to speak to (your name.)
Load More Replies...Fun fact: I received a weird invitation message while reading this page. I was kind of "oh, I hope it's a scam one as I'm full of inspiration now" but after double checking, it's someone I do know ^^
I never get the fun ones! It’s always just something about my package being late or lost.
Load More Replies...Fun fact - so many of them have typos or are so obviously a scam, because scammers are... smart! They don't want to waste time on clever people. They are looking only for those who are easy to manipulate, and this is one of the checks. If a person doesn't think this message is suspicious, it's entirely possible that he/she will fall for the trick.
Years back I was getting a lot of the "I have smuggled millions out of xxxcountry and if you help I will share it with you" type emails. Finally got them to stop by replying that I was working for the gov't of the country in question and we were tracking their location. Some of our agents would be visiting them shortly to reclaim the money and return them home where they would be sent to a re-education camp to make them a productive member of our culture.
Ya that's not a scam I've ever heard of. Sounds like you would've been a laundering billionaire by now if you had taken the signs the world threw your way. Next time someone pushes you towards a new career path at least consider it
Load More Replies...They found the one good use for AI: https://news.virginmediao2.co.uk/o2-unveils-daisy-the-ai-granny-wasting-scammers-time/
Kitboga also does this. Gets scammers to waste their time with his LLM bots.
Load More Replies...I'm glad google messages screens out scam/spam emails pretty effectively. I'm sometimes surprised how many message there are in my spam folder.
Every few months I go to my spam folder and I spam every single one of the numbers that spammed me with incredibly stupid and confusing context. It keeps me going.
Load More Replies...Back in the day, I used to have fun with telemarketers, pretending to be hard of hearing, and getting them shouting into the phone, asking tons of stupid questions, etc. Cell phones took a lot of the fun away. My sister though, is a family legend. Her best one was getting an obscene phone call, correcting his terminology, and making her own suggestions. He ended the call by exclaiming "Lady, you're sick!" and hung up! :D
this reminds me of one i got a few weeks ago where someone texted me calling me david, and asked to go to the bar with me for a drink so we could "catch up". i responded by saying something among the lines of "sorry dude, cant do that now. i am about to fight a big man named goliath who is mocking my peoples god, and my people are afraid of him because of his size, and they think that no one can defeat him. but i am not afraid, because i have the lord on my side. so i cant go to the bar today because im texting from a small stream, looking for 5 smooth stones to use with my slingshot to defeat this giant man. i will try to update you later on how this goes" then two days later i texted "i struck him out with the first stone in my slingshot, then when he fell down i took away his sword and swiftly chopped off his head with it". this may not be the EXACT conversation, but its pretty close. ill have to find the original conversation lol
Fortunately I never get these...but then I only use my phone for phone calls and never for social media.
These are amusing and while sometimes I consider doing if myself, I don't because a) don't want to confirm my number works and b) I think a lot more are automated these days
Just memorize a few different languages - one line each. (Japanese: "Moshi Moshi. French: "Bonjour". Spanish: Hola, Como Esta?" German: "Guten Tag". Etc...) Then answer and keep switching up. Scammers hang up and remove your name from their list. If it's someone legitimate, they will ask to speak to (your name.)
Load More Replies...Fun fact: I received a weird invitation message while reading this page. I was kind of "oh, I hope it's a scam one as I'm full of inspiration now" but after double checking, it's someone I do know ^^
I never get the fun ones! It’s always just something about my package being late or lost.
Load More Replies...Fun fact - so many of them have typos or are so obviously a scam, because scammers are... smart! They don't want to waste time on clever people. They are looking only for those who are easy to manipulate, and this is one of the checks. If a person doesn't think this message is suspicious, it's entirely possible that he/she will fall for the trick.
Years back I was getting a lot of the "I have smuggled millions out of xxxcountry and if you help I will share it with you" type emails. Finally got them to stop by replying that I was working for the gov't of the country in question and we were tracking their location. Some of our agents would be visiting them shortly to reclaim the money and return them home where they would be sent to a re-education camp to make them a productive member of our culture.
Ya that's not a scam I've ever heard of. Sounds like you would've been a laundering billionaire by now if you had taken the signs the world threw your way. Next time someone pushes you towards a new career path at least consider it
Load More Replies...They found the one good use for AI: https://news.virginmediao2.co.uk/o2-unveils-daisy-the-ai-granny-wasting-scammers-time/
Kitboga also does this. Gets scammers to waste their time with his LLM bots.
Load More Replies...I'm glad google messages screens out scam/spam emails pretty effectively. I'm sometimes surprised how many message there are in my spam folder.
Every few months I go to my spam folder and I spam every single one of the numbers that spammed me with incredibly stupid and confusing context. It keeps me going.
Load More Replies...Back in the day, I used to have fun with telemarketers, pretending to be hard of hearing, and getting them shouting into the phone, asking tons of stupid questions, etc. Cell phones took a lot of the fun away. My sister though, is a family legend. Her best one was getting an obscene phone call, correcting his terminology, and making her own suggestions. He ended the call by exclaiming "Lady, you're sick!" and hung up! :D
this reminds me of one i got a few weeks ago where someone texted me calling me david, and asked to go to the bar with me for a drink so we could "catch up". i responded by saying something among the lines of "sorry dude, cant do that now. i am about to fight a big man named goliath who is mocking my peoples god, and my people are afraid of him because of his size, and they think that no one can defeat him. but i am not afraid, because i have the lord on my side. so i cant go to the bar today because im texting from a small stream, looking for 5 smooth stones to use with my slingshot to defeat this giant man. i will try to update you later on how this goes" then two days later i texted "i struck him out with the first stone in my slingshot, then when he fell down i took away his sword and swiftly chopped off his head with it". this may not be the EXACT conversation, but its pretty close. ill have to find the original conversation lol
Fortunately I never get these...but then I only use my phone for phone calls and never for social media.
