One answer I have never received though in days of researching this scam is HOW they actually can retrieve personal Facebook data from Skype without any consent from the account user.
What I have so far, is that Skype shares contact data with Facebook IF you set both up with the same user name. This explains how a skype ID "fred999" can be used to look up a public Facebook profile, because a facebook URL http://www.facebook.com/fred999 will lead anyone searching the name straight to a corresponding facebook profile.
But this doesn't explain how they can retrieve a user's Skype/Facebook contact details - which are private information - without a user's permission, which the scammer is apparently able to simply list either through Skype or using some other means, which they then paste into the Skype chat window.
If a person keep's their Facebook profile locked down and shares practically nothing publicly (like I do) there should be no way that this can happen. I am amazed that such a basic vulnerablility has not already been fixed or at least made public.
Can somebody explain to me how these scammers are able to get details like this at the drop of a hat? I think that a major part of recovering from being a victim of such a scam is UNDERSTANDING *HOW* IT HAPPENED AND WHAT CAN BE DONE TO PREVENT IT HAPPENING AGAIN (beyond the obvious admonishment of sexual behavior online).
I think at least some of the FAQ should cover technical issues regarding skype/facebook functionality and how contact info is handled, and how exploits allow this incredibly damaging leak of personal contact information to happen. Then maybe people will be able to take sensible precautions against these attacks (if this is already here somewhere I haven't seen, then apologies).
The biggest cost of these scams to me is not the money, but the huge burden of suffering that this brings to its victims and the very real possibility that it may drive a young or vulnerable victim to suicide.
![Sad :(](./images/smilies/icon_e_sad.gif)