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Legal threats are a common occurance nowadays though. I get calls weekly saying a warrant had been issued for my arrest or that my "SSN is about to be revoked".

Legal threats are a common occurance nowadays though. I get calls weekly saying a warrant had been issued for my arrest or that my "SSN is about to be revoked". The email also clearly says they are not sending a request at this time and it seems nicely written to me. I guess I don't get why this is on HN and everyone is so livid about it.

wtallis 5y ago
> I guess I don't get why this is on HN and everyone is so livid about it. I think this kind of scam would end up on HN even if it was a bunch of Nigerians doing it, and what's making people angry instead of merely taking note while rolling their eyes at scammers stooping to a new low is the fact that it's respectable universities rather than Nigerians.
kstrauser 5y ago
I understand what you’re saying, but this seemed a far more credible threat than someone wanting me to send them Bitcoin to delete my webcam video. For instance, here’s a story about a lawyer who filed so many ADA lawsuits that a judge barred them from filing any more. People abuse the legal system all the time, and while people on the receiving end of a lawsuit can fight it, it’s guaranteed to be expensive in many ways. I could absolutely see someone filing thousands of CCPA lawsuits that wouldn’t actually stand up in trial, but which would be an utter fiasco for even the un-liable defendants. Edit: Oops, here’s a story: https://www.azag.gov/press-release/serial-litigant-permanently-enjoined-filing-frivolous-ada-lawsuits-against-az https://www.azag.gov/press-release/serial-litigant-permanent...
shkkmo 5y ago
> . I get calls weekly saying a warrant had been issued for my arrest or that my "SSN is about to be revoked". And those are all illegal. If the telecoms weren't incompetent and protected from liability, you could find the people who did those things and either sue them or file charges.

wtallis 5y ago

> I guess I don't get why this is on HN and everyone is so livid about it. I think this kind of scam would end up on HN even if it was a bunch of Nigerians doing it, and what's making people angry instead of merely taking note while rolling their eyes at scammers stooping to a new low is the fact that it's respectable universities rather than Nigerians.

kstrauser 5y ago

I understand what you’re saying, but this seemed a far more credible threat than someone wanting me to send them Bitcoin to delete my webcam video. For instance, here’s a story about a lawyer who filed so many ADA lawsuits that a judge barred them from filing any more. People abuse the legal system all the time, and while people on the receiving end of a lawsuit can fight it, it’s guaranteed to be expensive in many ways. I could absolutely see someone filing thousands of CCPA lawsuits that wouldn’t actually stand up in trial, but which would be an utter fiasco for even the un-liable defendants. Edit: Oops, here’s a story: https://www.azag.gov/press-release/serial-litigant-permanently-enjoined-filing-frivolous-ada-lawsuits-against-az https://www.azag.gov/press-release/serial-litigant-permanent...

shkkmo 5y ago

> . I get calls weekly saying a warrant had been issued for my arrest or that my "SSN is about to be revoked". And those are all illegal. If the telecoms weren't incompetent and protected from liability, you could find the people who did those things and either sue them or file charges.