YouTube Scambaiters Turn the Tables — and the Police — on Internet Fraudsters
Financial scams are exploding worldwide, and YouTube vigilantes are documenting their efforts to stop them
An online vigilante who goes by the alias Jim Browning works as a "scambaiter."
Photographer: Gloria Kurnik/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Erin West considers herself well-versed in the world of crypto scams. As a prosecutor in Santa Clara, California, her specialty is staying on top of these schemes, which have exploded since the pandemic.
Yet as scams proliferate and become increasingly sophisticated, law enforcement is struggling to cope. So online vigilantes known as “scambaiters” are filling the gaps, turning the tables on fraudsters by devising elaborate ways to waste their time or tricking them into revealing information about their operations that can be shared with authorities.