To troll a predator
Of course this is a very serious matter, and Only Police Can Set Traps to Catch Bad Guys. But the idea of superheroes trolling predators – ha! There is a certain amusing element here. From the National Post: To Troll a Predator.
Filed in assorted 2 Comments so far
2 Responses to “To troll a predator”
skadhu on 10 Jul 2012 at 6:20 pm #
Although I sympathize with the intent, I’d be a little concerned for the teenagers’ safety—some predators might react violently and without thought for consequences. And I wonder if there’s any way this extra-legal approach could create some kind of legal loophole for the predators…? That would be bad.
But on a somewhat related topic, a recent Economist article suggests that new research shows that when it comes to scammers, “a little bit of public-spirited scam-baiting—wasting the fraudsters’ time by pretending to be a potential victim—can increase the scammers’ costs and undermine their business model.” (Apparently one of the reasons that online scamming emails often seem blatantly obvious is that putting them out like that self-selects for gullible people.) So there’s a physically safer option for those who want to strike down wrong-doers.
Gabriolan on 10 Jul 2012 at 11:18 pm #
There are all kinds of problems with the superheroes’ methods, and all kinds of reasons why their approach is, I think, less than wise and less than fair. That said, there’s nothing I can do about their actions. As the story is already out there in the news, I might as well laugh at the parts of it that amuse me.
I read that Economist article – thanks. There are busy online communities of people who bait scammmers – 419 baiter and 419 eater are two of them. What they get scammers to do is often highly amusing.