Unfortunately, they seem to target us deaf people. I know that to be true because I have 3 Yahoo! e-mail addresses...1) my children only...2) deaf people only...& 3) hearing people only.  With the #1, I get no junk mail so why am I not surprised?  With #3, I get a few spams  in spite of the fact that I am on many mailing lists because of genealogy.  With #2, the spammers/scammers have flooded my computer with many, many unwanted mails.  They took (still do) advantage of my YIM.  I think that the videophone list and deafVP.com are exposing our vulnerability.  It would be nice if all Sorenson VP Installers take the time to educate the less fortunate ones.  Just my 2 cents worth.

Lois

It's kind of strange because I get the same type scams, though only in email....I don't own a Sidekick.                                                                                                                                                                                I mean, hardly a day goes by that I don't receive email saying some Deaf person, in Africa wants to send me millions of dollars.

Of course, it also requires me to give personal information, such as my bank account number, which I'd have to be a Deaf and dimbulb to do, so I know, immediately, that it's a scam.

UPDATE: This happened last night.

(Scammer has been logging in and off for several hours now.)

SCAMMREPAYFBI:  hello

SCAMMREPAYFBI:  hello

dianrez: May I know your name pls?

(Long pause, at least 5 minutes)

SCAMMREPAYFBI:  Sure

dianrez: Name pls.

(Long pause, maybe looking it up)

SCAMMREPAYFBI:  my name is inspector williams johnson         johnson

(Foreigners frequently give names using two English last names. Note the "Williams Johnson.")

dianrez: your office and address pls

(long pause: probably trying to look it up on a script or on the internet)

SCAMMREPAYFBI: what for?

SCAMMREPAYFBI:  ?

dianrez: Verification that you are real

(No reply.  Logging in and off repeatedly until 9 a.m. the next morning.)

I get it, too. Grr...

You are not alone...

gwlj

I get it too.  Quite often, actually.  They keep switching to different screenames after I blocked them but now I realize I should have kept our conversations and report it to FBI.  Hmpth.  I'll unblock them then. *chuckles*

I figured it was a scam too.   Glad to know that I'm not the only one.

-Rosa Lee

I've yet to fall victim to this because I have a compu-pro friend, who, when I first got online, told me to watch for them.  From time to time, I even get sob notices from a Deaf heiress, in South America (of course you'll never get one from next door, you know) offering to give me millions of dollars, if I'll give them my bank info, Soc. Sec. #, etc. 

Truth be told, it seemed too good to be true.  So, with that in mind, when I met the man, I've mentioned, I asked him and he said, "If it seems to be  too good to be true, it probably isn't true."

I have a friend, whom I contacted, right after I came online, who is a computer professoinal.      

This man helped me because I asked him why I'm getting posts, requesting to give me millions of dollars, when I know you don't get something for nothing.  His reply was, "This is a scam."

Thank the Lord I had him to help me because, otherwise, I might have given them information that would have ruined me.

I am a late deafened adult - I've been totally Deaf, since I was ten and if you ask me, the Deaf are easy marks for scammers, etc.

Why?  Because we (this included me, until I knew what was going on, fortunately, I had the sense not to put my social security number, etc. in the 'net) don't understand what is going on, out there.

In 1999, I purchased my first pc and became a member of a ListServ, consisting of members of a missionary group, I'd been in, years before.  One of the origianl members of this group was also in the List and I'd ask him why I was getting pop-ups saying I had millions of dollars awaiting me.                                                                     His reply was simple:  "One key:  You don't get something for nothing!"

The problem is, the majority of the Deaf people go blindly into this new medium, without the benefit of someone like the friend, I've just mentioned.  So, they become easy marks for scammers because the lure of free money is so strong.

@Josivy - Thanks for the info--it has been continuing under different names and it appears that it is a successful scam that is victimizing some Deaf people, because it has gone on so long and it appears to be more than one person because the language is slightly different on some of them. I wish there were some way to warn all Deaf people with computers and pagers.