‘Reconsidering his career path’: Woman masterminds the best possible deterrent for spam callers

Imagine clocking in each day, cozying up with a steaming cup of deceit to pilfer the savings of unsuspecting souls. It’s a grind, really.

It’s a thankless job, a never-ending cycle of deceit and disappointment, punctuated by the occasional “sorry, wrong number” and the soul-crushing realization that maybe they should have listened to their mother and become an accountant instead. But on a particularly unremarkable Tuesday — or was it Wednesday? Honestly, who keeps track anymore? — our everyday scammer, Scammy McScamface, found himself dialing into destiny, like this one scammer who is enjoying a Parisian vaycay!

In a one-minute TikTok clip shared by @irlrosie, he dials a number, hoping to swindle the TikToker out of an oddly specific $3.6 million. The twist?  She interrupts the scammer at every turn, spouting nonsensical phrases like “WHY YE” and “My bank of America’s not one. Only with the 1.3 innnn it.” The scammer tries to keep up, but the feat proves to be almost impossible…and more than a little embarrassing.

As the conversation unfolds, the woman struggles to contain her laughter, covering her mouth to muffle the giggles threatening to expose her ruse. The scammer, meanwhile, sighs in exasperation and gets reduced to a bumbling, stammering mess, leaving him questioning and contemplating a career change to something less stressful… like lion taming, or how about bomb disposal?

Meanwhile, users couldn’t help but express their admiration for the woman’s quick thinking and comedic timing. “Your huuuhhuhh’ s have me dying,” one user wrote. While another quipped, “I’m over here trying to laugh quietly so he doesn’t hear me too.” Some even expressed a desire to join in on the fun, with one user proclaiming, “I need a scammer to call me so I can play.. this is hilarious.”

Amidst the hilarity, there’s a sobering reality: Scammers are a persistent bunch. As one TikTok user pointed out, “The scary part is they do this all day.” And they’re not wrong. In 2022, Americans lost a staggering $10.3 billion to internet scams, the highest losses in five years. BEC attacks alone resulted in financial losses of $2.94 billion in 2023. It’s a troubling trend, one that disproportionately affects older individuals, with those aged 60 and above losing a total of $3.4 billion to online scams in 2023.

So while it’s tempting to celebrate the occasional victory over these scammers, we should remember that they’re not just bumbling idiots on the other end of the line (as this woman found out the harsh way). They’re part of a larger, more insidious problem that preys on the vulnerable and costs billions each year. But hey, until we can beat ’em, we might as well join ’em in a battle of wits, right?