Be Cautious

After a year in SL .. I wanted to post a small note to all new members, to remember that SL is a wonderful platform for self expression, showcasing creativity, living some of our dreams, meeting new friends and much more -- However, it is also prime for the criminal mind, and megalomania runs rampant -- where people who consider themselves so much smarter than the rest; that they revel in preying on the innocent, and make a game out of relieving naive or trusting people of their money .. by posing as things such as "Banks" or other similar institions, that in the "real world" are regulated, and insured--with rules and regulations to protect people. However, there is no way to "regulate" such things in Second Life, and while it would be a nice idea, without any effort at all, they make for a perfect place to run a "pyramid scheme" and deplete the trusting of actual cash. Enjoy Second Life in all that it gives us to express ourselves, but be weary of thinking that SL translates exactly the same as RL .... it can not, and does not.

It's a video game

What was your question?

Whilst I am sorry if you have had a bad experience here Shay I must argue this above point. SL can be everything as painful or pleasureable as RL in some respects.

What were grits again?

I wondered that too, but I was scared people would think I was stupid if I asked.

Horrid nasty things, not fit for human consumption.

Ah yeah .. leave it to the hobbit huh?

I think we've determined that already, my friend.

My school teachers always used to say that if you had a question you should ask it, because other people might be wondering too.

Delicious with real butter (not that fake Oleo crap) melted over them, and a sprinkling of salt and pepper.

That's great. But no one has explained the nature of the grits themselves.

They are a coarse ground corn meal.

Not to start the old game vs. platform argument but most people would disagree with you. Regardless, people put substantial sums of money into SL. The OP's advice is excellent, and new users would do well to take it to heart. Should we assume that you run an SL "bank" or some other type of investment scheme, or are you just a supporter of fraud in general?

Feel free to assume whatever you wish.

edit: Too slow. Chip beat me to it..


QFT anyway.

I think most people understand that real-life money is involved in Second Life. And we can only assume [they] are privy to scams and frauds in the real world...

With these two things in mind, I think it's pretty easy to steer-clear of traps and scams. If you get caught in one, perhaps you should never answer the phone at home, check your email, or collect your junk mail.

I think all this drama makes for a pretty interesting sub-culture. It's fun to know there are dangers out there, lurking in the shadows. I think SL is safe overall, but the added possibilities of meeting a scam artist is--in my eyes--added entertainment.

I feel for the people that get scammed...but I think you have to be pretty ignorant about the system to fall into a trap like SL Banks. A little research is all that's needed...and hopefully, if [you're] putting money into something, you've done your homework.

Not everyone is so keen as to spot a scam for what it is. Misleading wording of a scammer can be confusing to someone who has trouble understanding english. Some people have learning disabilities or other similar problems that keep their "scam alarm" from working at full potential. Many of these people come to SL not seeing it as a "game", but as a virtual world full of opportunity, whether it be social or business or whatever. I doubt these people being ripped off would agree that it's "fun" having those sorts of dangers out there. In fact, I don't see the fun factor in knowing that there are scammers and con-artists like that out there, at all.

I'd say I wasn't exactly dim but in my very early days I was taken for a ride at yard sales and the like. I quickly understood that the worth of things was relative but not before I had bought a few duds.

I'll ask the question to the OP tho. What happened?

Sarah Nerd has a very educational blog post about a con artist working in SL. It is an educational read.

That's cool. Just my thoughts. Cheers.

Now we're talking! *YUM*

Yes its things like this that make me glad I took up "Prince Akamimbo bombabango" on his kind offer to split half the $1000000000 he found in a dorment account in the bank that he owns, "the Financial bank of financial monetary monies of Nigeria".

Ill be sitting pretty once that 7th "processing fee" I had to send him goes through eh

Nigeria must be one of those new tiger economies we're always hearing about. General M'beke N'kolo of the Nigerian Army did the same thing for me.

Yes I think we can consider ourselves fortunate not to fall for these scams that people are talking about in SL, Ill warn my Nigerian friend about it also, what with being royalty AND owning a bank, Id hate to see something like this happen to him in SL