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A comment on Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts?. Parent comment

Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by dragontamer on Monday September 30, 2024 @10:05PM (#41704046)
It's done with slave labor.

It's called pig butchering. You kidnap people, hold them in Cambodia or whatever (lots of locations where local criminal gangs rule) so the locals don't bother checking for literally kidnapped slaves.

If police stop by, pay them off and make up a story about debts and punishment.

Then you use the slaves to scam others in pig butchering scams. If the slaves refuse, you beat them until they comply.

https://www.propublica.org/article/pig-butchering-scams-raid...

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by solardev on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @12:09AM (#41704543)
Thanks! That's a much better link and explanation than what I linked to.
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Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by Double_a_92 on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @05:03AM (#41706129)
Btw this is also used as a sob-story tactic by the scammers if you eventually call them out after some time.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by willcipriano on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @09:27AM (#41708096)
Yeah a lot of it happens in office buildings in places like Nigeria. People wearing business casual clothes and everything. At first glance it just looks like a normal company.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by dotancohen on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @05:13AM (#41706188)
So reply asking if they want you to notify authorities in their city. I doubt that the kidnappers are reading every message. And even if they are, better to let the kidnappers know that they are being encroached upon.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by otterley on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @06:08AM (#41706513)
These outfits are often working under the protection of the local authorities thanks to rampant bribery.
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Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by dotancohen on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @08:19AM (#41707432)
That's why the initiative has to come from outside.
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Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by FredPret on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @10:00AM (#41708533)
Local authorities are involved. Sounds like the only outside initiative that will help is Seal Team 6.
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Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by janalsncm on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @01:30PM (#41711495)
According to Wikipedia it seems like China arrested a few of them. It’s a fairly big concern for them since Chinese citizens are often the victims of these foreign “business opportunities”. They will warn you if you’re going to those areas.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by nullstyle on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @09:53AM (#41708442)
It sounds like you’ve developed a very special set of skills, Mr. Neeson.

This situation is a little more complicated than to be solved by a back and forth on the hacker news comment section.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by Scoundreller on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @10:48AM (#41709152)
> These outfits are often working under the protection of the local authorities thanks to rampant bribery.

I don’t think I’ll ever visit Cambodia and I can call Cambodia for a few cents a minute as well as their embassies.

Their local authorities can’t block us all!

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by ceejayoz on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @06:47AM (#41706708)
> I doubt that the kidnappers are reading every message.

The guy working one computer over elbow-to-elbow is gonna narc you out for better treatment, though.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Ask HN: Should you reply STOP to unwanted texts? by janalsncm on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @01:25PM (#41711431)
Just to clarify the terminology, pig butchering refers to the scam to steal money from fake romantic partners. The SE Asian kidnapping/slavery shops that run pig butchering scams are referred to as fraud factories.
[ Parent | on HN ]