Part of the issue is amateurish mistakes. i.e., when a provider sends out a mass text message displaying everyone else's phone number in the "to" field. Now, all those numbers are exposed to the internets.
I getting text messages from a website that put my number on their site indicating involvement in the hobby. To remove it, they are asking for hundreds of dollars. Anyone else fall victim to this scam? Advice would be appreciated. Good reminder to everyone out there to use a throwaway 100% of the time. Get sloppy and you pay for it. Thanks!
-- Modified on 7/10/2014 9:01:39 AM
Listings of addresses names pictures phone #s and one lady had her kids school info posted on the site.
This hobby can be so fun and enjoying but once shit like this happens it becomes one sick hobby.
Dont pay it of course. Hopefully like all these hateful sites in the past it will go away... Dont pay the $ and dont enter your name or number into their search box they will add it once searched to add more people.
Sorry this has happened to you
OXOX
KL
-- Modified on 7/10/2014 5:56:21 AM
Yes, I agree, about a year ago I was on some porn sites and all of a sudden there flashed onto my screen this "all government official looking" message. It immediately locked my computer up and I could do nothing. Had to pay 300 to get a money card with a code # on it to enter so I could continue using my computer
I've never gotten this exact version of this (I do all my porn browsing on a non-Windows, non-Mac computer, so these kinds of malware can't lay a glove on me).
However, I have seen machines that have been infected with similar stuff, usually by what is commonly known as "drive-by malware". This is when you unintentionally allow your finger or mouse linger too long on a banner ad (even from a legit site--last one of these was from a banner ad on the NY Times site), and then the virus goes to town on your machine.
These things are diabolically clever. They load themselves onto your machine ahead of the boot sector, so it becomes very tough to remove them. Best way to do so is to remove the drive from your computer and then mount it as a secondary drive on another machine. With the drive essentially "sandboxed" you can now easily search and destroy all those pesky files that have locked up your computer.
Sending these Serbian script-kiddies their $300 just rewards their bad behavior, and ensures that they'll do it again, either to you or to someone else.
Even if you don't have the technical skills to do this yourself, I'd rather give $300 to an expert (expert does NOT equal the "Geek Squad", btw) to fix this for me than give it to the script-kiddies...
...have to do is do a hard reboot of your computer and let it shut down. Turn it back on, run additional virus scans and the problem is gone. Shouldn't have to cost you anything.
Great post, very interesting. Thanks....
Yep, know someone it happened to, destroyed the computer entirely. The extortion notes were pretty nasty too. In that case, the guy who sent it is a member of another dating site, where hes probably extorting away on there too.
It has been around for awhile. Sometimes porn, sometimes kiddie porn and it can come up from clicking on an innocuous looking link that you click.
Another version is that it appears on your work computer and they threaten to tell your boss unless you comply. It happened on one of my home computers and I just took into the Geek Squad. I am comfortable doing that because I never look at any illegal sites.
There was a pretty good story on 60 minutes or CNBC within the past year or so. A couple geeks made about $100 million on the scam. If they'd been smart and shut down rather than being greedy and continuing, they'd probably have gotten away with it.
Part of the issue is amateurish mistakes. i.e., when a provider sends out a mass text message displaying everyone else's phone number in the "to" field. Now, all those numbers are exposed to the internets.
Thank you for the responses. I don't think this relates to visiting a website as I was calling providers on backpage the week before. I have received several texts from two numbers. The first one actually responded to me quickly. They even had my name and prior employer, which tells me they ran a quick google search during our conversatikn(my cell and prior employer is near top of results).
Anyways, I am sure this is a scam taking advantage if those in the hobby. Looking at the website more they have a physical location in India, that most likely runs/programs the scripts. Their legal disclaimers and terms of use are rather interesting too. If you want the website pm me.
My big concern is the fact that if you pay the cost (raining from $200-500 depending on how quickly you want to remove it), other websites could pick it up. Or these scammers share the fact you paid the money and keep extorting you. At this point I think I can roll the dice and explain it away. The prior information regarding porn sites has been helpful.
Watch out when calling unreviewed providers! Also always double check the number in an ad vs the confirmed reviewed phone number. I can see these scammers putting ads of there for reputable providers but different phone numbers.
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