Can Someone Blackmail You on Facebook? Of course, you can be blackmailed on Facebook. It’s one of the most popular social media sites in America. People use it for everything from dating to business transactions.
What would you do if someone had compromising information about you and threatened to share it with your friends or post it on social media? This is a question we should all ask ourselves. It can happen to anyone. You never know who might be able to use this kind of data against you so it’s important for everyone to stay cautious when sending messages online.
Top 10 Tips to Fight Back if Scammers Try to Blackmail You
- Don’t fall victim to the scam. The criminals will return with demands for even more money if you’ve already paid.
- Make sure that you note the scammer’s details so they can be reported. If it was Facebook URL or any photos sent along with instructions on how much money is needed for payment – this will come in handy when reporting them.
- To report a post on Facebook, click the three dots in the top right corner and select “report post.”
- Remove a video from the internet, simply flag it as inappropriate on whatever platform was used for uploading. This is easy and will be similar no matter what website or app was chosen in order to share this video.
- To ensure that your video is removed from any website, do a Google search for “Your Name.” If anyone has posted it elsewhere and you find them online- report them as well.
- Create a Google alert for your name. If there is no result, then that means nothing has been posted about you on the internet.
- You can block and delete the scammers from your Facebook friends list too. Click on “Your Name” at the top right of the page, then choose Friends to see your friends list.
- You should deactivate your account for two weeks to make the scammers think you’ve panicked and deleted it.
- Make sure blackmailers are not on your friend’s list. You can avoid being found by scammers after you change your username and profile photo.
- Did they get your number or email address? Be sure to block them there too! Don’t answer the phone and don’t open any attachments from someone who doesn’t know how trustworthy it is.
Most Common Facebook Blackmail Scenario
The charming stranger has made a friend request, and you accept. It’s not long before the person who sent messages is in your Facebook (article: What Happens When You Report Blackmail on Facebook?) feed asking to communicate.
You don’t know who this person is, but they seem like a friend at first. Maybe after some sweet-talking or because you’re lonely and need someone to talk to about things that are going on in your life. The conversation quickly turns sexual. After sharing nude images or engage in an explicit conversation, things take a drastic turn for the worse.
You will soon find yourself thinking about how to stop sextortion and go back into your normal life.
The stranger suddenly threatens to share your private images, videos, or text messages by sending them to all your friends on Facebook. They say that if you pay them for a short period of time, you will avoid mortification and shame.
If you’ve been targeted with a sextortion scam or blackmail and need help removing pictures or videos off of the Internet, contact us.
