Technological advancements happen faster than we imagine. Many of us struggle to remember a time before smartphones, never mind the internet. So we tend to assume that all the annoyances of the post-internet world were not present in a pre-internet world.

However, those annoyances were there before the advent of the internet. It is very likely that your ancestors also got to experience the same problems that we are exposed to on the internet. Even if you go back a hundred years in time, be ready to face things like Nigerian scams and email spam.

Funny “AutoCorrect” Mistakes in Telegraphed Messages

You must have sent text messages on SMS or WhatsApp only to realize later that your cellphone’s AutoCorrect changed the message to make it impossible to read, or even completely changed what it meant. For example, when attempting to fix a perceived spelling mistake, AutoCorrect may change “casket” into “basket,” or “Vaseline” into “gasoline.”

Users of telegraph services had to face this same issue in the 1800s and early 1900s. Simply because the correct signals sent through the telegraph did not guarantee that the same message would be communicated to the receiver.

This resulted in some awkward encounters, as you may have well imagined. A Virginia-based commission firm once got a telegram requesting the information on “undressed staves.” Instead of “staves” (posts made of wood), the sender wrote the word “slaves.” One of the firm’s employees sent this reply: “We are not involved in the slave trade.”

There was another instance where the message “Governor general turns first sod” (referring to a ceremony at a railway station in London) was received as “Governor general twins first son.” Some news agency then misinterpreted it even further by publishing this statement: “Lady Kennedy, the wife of Sir Arthur Kennedy, Governor-General of Queensland, yesterday gave birth at Government House, Brisbane, to twins, the firstborn being a son.” Since the governor had no partner, it came as a real surprise for Londoners.

This was referred to as Hog-Morse. It happened because of inept or inexperienced telegraph operators misinterpreting signals of Morse code. Sounds the same as a pre-computer era version of software bugs. Novice telegraph users making such errors were even referred to as bugs. This was because they used a key for operating the telegraph that had a logo featuring an insect.

Electronic Spam Originated in Victorian-Era Britain

You heard it right, e-spamming has been a major discomfort since the 1800s. It first happened in 1864. It all started when the office of an unofficial dentist in London used this technology to send a message advertising their services and business hours to a mass audience.

With the help of a newly launched Telegraph operating company in London, Arnold and Maurice Gabriel sent a hundred telegraphic messages at one time. They specifically targeted notable individuals from British society. At the time, telegrams were only used to send extremely urgent messages. This incident caused widespread shock and anger, as can be seen in this letter written to the editor of a London publication:

Someone else expressed they thought a disaster like some flood or fire had happened before realizing he had been spammed. Soon after, other shady individuals and enterprises followed suit, and the practice continues till today.

“Nigerian Prince” Scams Originated in the 1500s

Scam messages from “Nigerian royalty” (committing a vast unclaimed fortune for a comparatively meager “bank fee”) have been doing the rounds for the past over two decades. They will most likely keep on scamming us for eternity. From the scammer’s point of view, it takes just one unsuspecting victim in thousands to make it all pay off, since just one victim of this scam can be shortchanged for months or if the scammer gets very lucky, even years.

However, this scam is just an updated version of a con that has been going on for centuries. Since the 1500s, vulnerable people have been becoming victims of a scam called the “Spanish Swindle” or Spanish Prisoner Letter.” As the name suggests, it originated in Spain. It works the same way as the “Nigerian Prince” scam. Letters are sent to victims in which the scammer claims to be a formerly unknown relative held in a Spanish prison. In the letter, the writer claims he has a huge fortune and is willing to share with the victim if they could just pay to bail him out of prison. So essentially, the selling point is the same as the “Nigerian Prince” scam. Just pay a small amount of cash and get a lot more cash in return.

Summing Up

The internet is arguably the most valuable invention of all time. Our lives are currently so heavily dependent on the internet that we don’t even remember a time before the internet. But with everything good about the internet, there are a few annoyances that we wish were not present. What will certainly not annoy you is the stable and swift service offered by Windstream. Their internet plans are available in numerous states nationwide. Contact Windstream Internet Service to get the package that best suits your needs.