Beware of Filipino scammers in Phnom Penh

by **gavinmac** » Thu May 24, 2012 10:54 am

Interesting. You must have said something to scare them off or get them to lose interest. Did you tell them you were a journalist or something?

I'm kind of surprised that the scam works on chicks at all, because I would expect chicks to be a lot more wary about going to a random dude's house. But perhaps it was a chick who approached you.

I would also assume that they probably prefer to target solo tourists rather than couples, since it's easier to scam one person rather than two.

Timeshare salespeople who work around tourist areas in the US really have the targeting of marks down to a science and can size up potential targets in about 30 seconds. In Las Vegas, they almost exclusively approach couples walking through hotels, because single people don't buy timeshares. They first ask "how long are you guys in town?" to make sure that the couple will still be there for the timeshare tour the following morning.

Then they ask "Where are you from?" This is designed to ensure that they are not Canadian or other foreigners, since they can't write up the timeshare loan agreements with foreigners.

Then they awkwardly ask the couple "so do you guys live together?" Because couples who are just dating and not yet living together or married don't buy timeshares together.

Then they sign the couple up for a timeshare tour and they say "space on the bus tomorrow is limited so you'll have to present ID to go on the tour -- the 'ID' must be a credit card or a checkbook." Then at the end of the tour the next day the couple gets a free pair of Gilbert Gottfried tickets or something.

by **fritspaap** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:22 am

One of the customers in my hotel was scammed for 1500 USD by filipino's yesterday.
her story: she was at the russian market and a girl approached her saying how nice her necklace was and where she was from.
then later she went ( stupidly ) to her house and then they said she had to pay or they would kill her ( i dont know if they offered her to play card games ).
she paid around 1500 USD, today she went to the police to make a report so she could claim her money back from the insurance.

Thats all i know and all i got to share.

by **kiiniaew** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:41 am

How much the police took for the report? If they are clever they work together with the scammers, easy money... It is hard to protect people from this because they are either greedy or very naive. I not feel sorry for them, use your brain a bit more and you will not get scammed. I hope the insurance will not pay out since it is the customers own fault. If they pay out it means we all pay for these dumb people.

If you get approached by strangers with a dubious question just talk your native language (if that isn't EN) and 9 out of 10 times they give up. The funny thing is that some of those con-artists can speak a lot of languages (experienced this in Italy).

by **SunSan** » Fri May 25, 2012 10:44 am

They'll also stop if you tell them to fuck off, in English.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9780 using Tapatalk

by **gavinmac** » Fri May 25, 2012 11:15 am

fritspaap wrote:One of the customers in my hotel was scammed for 1500 USD by filipino's yesterday.
her story: she was at the russian market and a girl approached her saying how nice her necklace was and where she was from.

Damn, the Russian market. I took a long walk from Freebird to the Riverside via the Royal Palace yesterday afternoon in the hope of encountering the scammers again. I wanted to redeem myself from my Sorya Market flub and deliver a good anti-Filipino line this time. Or maybe I'll just go with "jerk store."

Anyway, I didn't run into any of them near the Royal Palace and I succeeded only in getting myself sweaty and a bit sunburned. Maybe they are smart enough not to be outside doing this shit in the mid-day heat.

by **Willem** » Fri May 25, 2012 12:25 pm

gavinmac wrote:And Manny Pacquiao is a queer

I'd go with drug cheat on this one. That should get their attention.

by **LTO** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:17 pm

A tourist walks up asking for directions or starts a 'where are you from?' conversation and the bar, and you respond "Blackjack scam?," and they will look confused and say something like "Huh?"

Filipino scammer walks up to you and tries to start a conversation and you respond "Blackjack scam?," they will get all serious and deny it saying something like "No!"

by **cambod** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:39 pm

LTO wrote:A tourist walks up asking for directions or starts a 'where are you from?' conversation and the bar, and you respond "Blackjack scam?," and they will look confused and say something like "Huh?"

Filipino scammer walks up to you and tries to start a conversation and you respond "Blackjack scam?," they will get all serious and deny it saying something like "No!"

Haha, so u just go around saying it to everyone?! That will be my new response to all motodopes/TukTuks from now on...

by **Goodoldkenny** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:48 pm

I don't know if this would work or not but it stops beggars dead in the Philippines.

"Wella quarta" I have no money

Kenny

by **LTO** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:54 pm

cambod wrote:Haha, so u just go around saying it to everyone?! That will be my new response to all motodopes/TukTuks from now on...

No, not everyone. And I don't think it'll work on tuktuks, at least not if your intent is to make them stop talking to you. It'll just be an opening to continue the conversation about what you mean.

by **NedK** » Fri May 25, 2012 4:08 pm

I just don't get how anyone in their right mind (meaning, not incredibly and dangerously drunk or suffering from some condition that has impaired their cognition) would ever, ever, ever, ever, ever? Ever. Fall for something like this.

Did everyone move here from Mayberry? Are retirement homes doing senior tours of Cambodia now? Are they all feverish from malaria or some other grave illness? Are they hardcore gambling addicts that start sweating and shaking when someone uses the word "blackjack?" Perhaps they have a Filipino fetish and the thought of spending some time with them is a big turn-on? Were they brainwashed in a cult earlier in life and are now unable to resist following orders? Are the Filipinos trained hypnotists whose banter about shirts somehow lulls their victim into a trance, at which point they very quietly tell them that they are getting very stupid, and when he counts to ten and then says the word blackjack they will awaken in a vegetative state?

How could anyone possibly think it was a good idea to go and gamble with some strangers who have just approached you on the street? A street in PHNOM PENH for fuck's sake? If they don't have their guard up a bit when traveling S.E. Asia, what happens to them when they are at home? Do they regularly trade their livestock for magic beans? Are most of their email contacts Nigerian bankers and diplomats? Where on Earth can people possibly live where the folks raised there are so trusting and naive, yet still manage to live long enough to have occasion to travel to Cambodia? Some utopian commune or Amish village that happens to have its own travel agency?

I'm sorry to be such a dick about it, but it is so far beyond my understanding that I'm shocked when I hear about people getting taken by this stuff. A guy I met who was traveling the region had to hand over $900 or something ... And otherwise he seemed perfectly intelligent and reasonable, probably capable and talented in some areas of life and all that, good guy. He wasn't a developmentally disabled kid who won a free trip over from the Special Olympics, nothing like that at all. Yet there he was, playing a fixed card game, alone and on his own, with a bunch of total strangers (a gang of them, you could even say) who claimed to have liked his shirt or something. Who does that?

Look, I know my background isn't quite as cheerful in places as some other people's might be, and maybe I have a bit more expertise when dealing with the criminal element, but I don't think I would have fallen for this at any point in my life past the age of 10, if that. It doesn't take an expert on criminal behavior to see a scam when it presents itself so obviously, so nakedly, so unabashedly brazen in its design, approach, and delivery.

Here is my advice to the victims: Don't ever talk to strangers if this sort of thing happens to you. Just run away if one says anything to you. Yell "Stranger Danger!" Most of the time they were probably harmless, but since you don't have it in you to recognize the bad people with the bad ideas, stay on the move, jog down the block with earplugs in. If you need to meet a new person, bring a friend along who isn't a mark and let them watch over you. I know this plan of action is going to make life inconvenient for you, but it's really the safest route.

For the rest of you who aren't yet confirmed suckers, set an example for others. You can do this. If you don't know somebody, don't trust them. Doesn't mean you can't interact with them, you don't have to trust somebody to have a conversation. Actively question any idea, scheme, or plan of action they present to you. No matter what it is. Consider, at least for a moment, could this be a scam? Sometimes it can't be. What is the purpose of a scam? To get your money. Is there any proposition with money involved in what this stranger is suggesting, initially or at any point in your interactions? If there is, then you can assume it might be a scam and say no to them. Do they want you to go with them to someplace private? Well, just decline, You don't need to see the apartment of the Filipino guy who likes your shirt that you just met 5 minutes ago in the market. Why would you? I won't even get into the topic of drugs here, which has a bunch of pretty simple rules to live by, but if people are getting taken down by this blackjack scam, I'm probably not doing them a favor by doing anything that might encourage them to go off looking for drugs.

If you really are in need of help sorting something like this out, shoot me a message or whatever, if you get a hold of me I'll do my best to try and talk you out of it or get you through it. In fact, call me, explain whats up, and then just put the Filipino guy on the line so I can have a quick chat with him and work things out. He'll understand and you'll be on your way in no time, your bank account flush with cash, and having never had a bunch of Filipinos frog-march you to an ATM and threaten to kill you, you'll be as happy as a little bluebird. Life will be grand.

by **LTO** » Fri May 25, 2012 4:20 pm

Naivite and/or greed.

Nevertheless conning people is unethical and, if I am not mistaken, illegal.

by **fritspaap** » Fri May 25, 2012 4:23 pm

The victim in my hotel wrote on a paper to be beware for scammers with some information, i made a photo of it with my ipad but dont know how i can upload from ipad to forum, will post it later using pc

by jm » Fri May 25, 2012 4:26 pm

Use Tapatalk.

by **gavinmac** » Fri May 25, 2012 4:26 pm

Backpackers like to visit the homes of foreigners. It's a unique cultural interaction, it proves they are not racist, and it's (usually) free. Once they are in the house, then the thugs have them and sometimes the con is not based on greed.

We really should come up with a "419-eater" way to reverse scam the scammers. All I can think of at the moment is that when the Filipino invites you to his house, ask to borrow his phone so that you can call your friend to break off a conflicting engagement. Or when he says his sister is going to be a nurse in your country, ask to see her photo on his phone. Or since you're complimenting each other, just say "Wow, nice phone, can I see it."

Once you get the dude's phone in your hand, you just smash it on the ground or throw it in the river. That's pretty mature. He probably won't punch you, they can't be using public violence if they want to continue to operate.