Find out if, Do Sextortionists Follow Through On Their Threats? You may be in a trouble spot with someone online. You are chatting with them and next thing you know they want more money. Because you sent some intimate images and they are threatening to send them to the whole internet if you don’t pay up.
According to the internet crime complaint center they received over 7.3 million complaints in 2022 alone. And most of the time it’s because someone sends intimate content of themselves to scam artists overseas. So, if you do so please remember that law enforcement agencies can do very little for crimes that happen in other countries outside of the United states.
But, no, in most cases sextortionsists do not truly follow through because they really don’t have anything in the first place except a dream to make money.
Do Not Stress Remember There is Help Available!
Digital Investigation can help with many sextortion cases. We are experts at helping you get your life back to where it once was. We will help find and negotiate with the cyber criminal no matter where in the world.
How Not to Become A Victim of Sextortion
Sextortion can be a very stressful time for all those involved. It’s usually something that you don’t have to worry about because scammers are mostly bluffing trying to get money.
Don’t become a victim of sextortion by:
- Never sharing any intimate images of yourself
- Not talking to anyone who will not reveal their age, sex and location
- Avoiding people who only talk about money
- Avoiding those who ask too many questions
- Avoiding weird video chat requests
- Not talking to those who know nothing about your location
- Keeping you social media platforms locked down
There are other telltale signs you are talking to a scammer. But the above is a pretty good start. A good rule of thumb is if someone doesn’t want to talk on the phone it’s a pretty good bet they are scamming you.
Always wait and see how the person responds and never act too quickly. People all over the internet are trying to extort money.
Dating apps are another playground for these sextortion scams because they prey on lonely people just trying to meet someone. Many victims are created on these sites. But, you want to learn to regain control by not falling for their junk.
Other Things You Can Do to Protect Yourself
Here are some other ways you can stay protected while online.
- Never release explicit phones
- Use caution with any dating app
- Never give into the blackmailer’s demands
- Use two factor authentication on all software
Sextortion can be a very distressing crime that causes all kinds of psychological pressure on the victim. Young adults are especially vulnerable to crime.
Getting Help. Seek Support
If someone has had a challenging time from a sextortion case they know just how hard it can be. Even when the threats stop it can seem like the threats persist.
Luckily there are many trained counselors ready and able to help most victims. Do not be afraid to seek one out and get the help you need. Just holding it all in can make your situation worse overtime. Young people who have gone through this may truly need support for such incidents.
Sextortionists rely on keeping people scared so they can come back over and over again.
What Sextortion Victims Should Do!
If you are a victim of sextortion on the net then you will need to follow a few things.
- Keep calm, being totally upset never helped anyone
- Get emotional support from friends and family
- Save all info and save texts
- Ignore blackmailers further demands
- Report to the platform involved
- Hire a service that can help you stop the blackmail
- Get help from a trained counselors if needed or talk to trusted friends
Reporting Sextortion
Now that something bad has happened online with you getting blackmailed it’s time to report it to the service where it happened. Even if you think that you cannot do anything for you, you will want to report it so that you can stop the criminal. This helps it stop affecting other people.
Most platforms have a way to report the crime in their standard website menu. Just be more careful about talking to strangers online next time.
The Mental Damage It Can Do
One of the things no one talks about is how damaging mentally a sextortion experience can be. If someone really has a lot to lose or if they are not sure of the scam they will fully believe the scam and it could be detrimental to their health.
Law enforcement getting involved will only cause them more stress. Plus if they think the scammer will release explicit photos. It will completely hurt them.
Staying Informed
Now that something bad has happened to you online, you may want to see what’s going on in the industry. This is also a great way to learn about new scams as they happen.
Remember its best not to share compromising material on the net because anyone can make an sextortion attempt. And remember to never keep any compromising material in your online accounts. This means all sexual images, pre recorded videos, sensitive material and explicit content.
Social engineering can play a big role in many of these online threats. Which is why it’s always good to have an extra layer of protection in case you ever get close to falling for a sextortion scam.
Stop Sextortion Crimes
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of one of these crimes, you may be thinking how in this day and age? But the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center shows more and more people are falling for these scams now more than ever. Many times its people who have not been online long and open new accounts.
