It’s that time of the year again, so don’t fall for the Secret Sister scam

I’ve been seeing these all over my social media, so I thought I’d do my one good deed for the year and hopefully keep some people from opening themselves up to mail fraud and gambling charges. Or at the least just getting scammed.

1. It's a pyramid scheme. Basically, the first people to join the gift exchange may receive gifts back, but as later people respond, they get fewer gifts or no gifts at all. Only the person who started the pyramid scheme really benefits.

2. It's illegal. They're classified as chain letter, which are considered a form of gambling and are illegal if they request money or other items and promise a substantial return. "They don't work because the promise that all participants in a chain letter will be winners is mathematically impossible," the Postal Service said.

And not only will you alienate friends and family by exposing them to scams, you’ll also probably leave yourself and your friends open to identity fraud.

7. ID theft. You could be the victim of identity theft if you participate in a Secret Sister gift exchange. As part of the scam, you're asked to provide an address, a phone number and other personal information that could be used by criminals in the future.

Link

Snopes article about it

Here’s to a happy scam free holiday!

Jesus people are stupid.

I don't even know where to begin. People are still this dense?

I guess it's expected; Android and Apple push out regular "security updates" and use them as a selling point simply because there are people still dumb enough to click on suspicious links in their emails and play the "spin the wheel" games on pop-up
ads.

........ There is no hope left for humanity.

a reply to: Lysergic

The funniest part to me is that at only 15 levels out you run out of people on earth.

Link

a reply to: underwerks

from that link;

If you assume that each person has 2 parents and their parents have 2 parents going back 2,4,8,16,32 then by the time you reach the 12th century you already have more than the population of who has ever lived on the planet.

🤔

tldr: people are inbred.

🤢




Merry Chrastmas!

a reply to: Lysergic

Hahahaha

In my 10,000 years on this planet this is the first I've ever heard of the "Secret Sister" scam.

Is she really my sister? If not...is she HOT?

Who created this? Did Mrs. Clause run out of cash from all the MadDog 20/20 when the old man was away that she started hookin' on the side?

What???

originally posted by: dothedew
I don't even know where to begin. People are still this dense?

I guess it's expected; Android and Apple push out regular "security updates" and use them as a selling point simply because there are people still dumb enough to click on suspicious links in their emails and play the "spin the wheel" games on pop-up
ads.

........ There is no hope left for humanity.

yes they are ...I recently read about a woman who got a call from someone pretending to be the "IRS" saying she owed 3 or 4 thousand dollars and they wanted her to pay them with gift cards......and she went out and did it!!!!!


I never heard of this secret sister deal so thanks for posting about it

originally posted by: research100
I recently read about a woman who got a call from someone pretending to be the "IRS" saying she owed 3 or 4 thousand dollars and they wanted her to pay them with gift cards......and she went out and did it!!!!!

It's scary how often people actually fall for this. You can listen to recorded scam calls like these on Youtube. It basically goes like this:
"Hello, this is the IRS. You owe us money, so the IRS police are on the way to arrest you right now and take your house and car and everything you own... Unless you don't want to get arrested. Are you interested in not going to jail and having everything you own confiscated? Yes? Ok, I can make sure the IRS police don't come for you and take your things. Please make sure you don't hang up the phone. Drive to the nearest store that sells gift cards. Ok, now go inside and buy the gift cards in the highest amounts possible until you hit $5,000, but make sure you tell the cashier the gift cards are just a present for someone so that they don't ask you questions. Ok, now go somewhere quiet where nobody will hear you and then read the codes on the back of the cards to me, and then I will stop the IRS police from arresting you."

a reply to: trollz


Whenever the IRS calls to let me know I'm about to get arrested I ask them to hold because I'm on call waiting with the boner medicine salesman from India.

originally posted by: Lysergic
Jesus people are stupid.

Yes, people are stupid but why are you singling out "Jesus people"?

originally posted by: Lysergic
Jesus people are stupid.

More accurately, stupid people are stupid.

No need to cuss 'bout it.