Sarah Phillips is a former ESPN columnist who was fired from ESPN in 2012 after Deadspin.com wrote an article claiming that Phillips and a partner may be involved in fraud and extortion. She was a freelance sports gambling columnist who used her connections to the Worldwide Leader to hijack a teenager’s Facebook venture. She developed a following in the message boards at Covers.com, a gambling website. Covers gave her a column, and in August 2011, ESPN’s Page 2 came calling
How long did Sarah Phillips work at ESPN?
Sarah Phillips worked at ESPN for less than a year. She was fired from ESPN in 2012
The Scam
Phillips posed as a successful sports gambler and offered to sell her picks to people. She would often use fake photos and social media accounts to create the illusion that she was a legitimate expert.
Once she had convinced people to pay for her picks, she would simply disappear with their money.
ESPN was forced to issue a public apology and Phillips was banned from their network. Several people who had been scammed by Phillips also filed lawsuits against her.
Phillips used a variety of fake names and identities, including Sarah Phillips, Sarah Jones, and Sarah Smith. She also used a variety of fake social media accounts, including Twitter accounts @SarahPhilly and @SarahJonesPicks.
Phillips’s scam was particularly successful because she was able to target people who were already interested in sports gambling. These people were more likely to be willing to pay for her picks, even though they were fake.
Phillips’s scam has had a lasting impact on the sports gambling industry. It has led to increased scrutiny of online gambling experts and made people more wary of those who offer to sell their picks. It has also raised questions about the vetting process for freelance writers at ESPN.
The Sarah Phillips scandal is a cautionary tale about the dangers of online fraud. It is important to be wary of anyone who offers to sell you something that seems too good to be true. If you are considering buying sports gambling picks, make sure to do your research and only deal with reputable sources.
Here are some tips for avoiding sports gambling scams:
- Do your research. Before you buy any sports gambling picks, make sure to do your research and only deal with reputable sources.
- Be wary of anyone who offers you guaranteed wins. There is no such thing as a guaranteed win in sports gambling, so anyone who claims to be able to guarantee you wins is probably a scammer.
- Don’t pay for picks. There are plenty of free sports gambling picks available online. There is no need to pay for picks, especially from someone who you don’t know or trust.
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