Important Facts
- Growing Threat: Sextortion is becoming a widespread issue, particularly among teenagers and young adults who are more likely to engage with strangers online.
- High Success Rate for Cybercriminals: Many victims comply with the demands of the extortionists, often out of fear or embarrassment, which encourages the perpetrators to continue their illegal activities.
- Increasingly Sophisticated Tactics: Hackers are using increasingly sophisticated methods to trap their victims, such as pretending to be someone the victim knows, using deepfake technology, or leveraging social engineering tactics.
- Victims May Feel Isolated: Many victims of sextortion feel ashamed or fear social stigma, which leads them to avoid reporting the crime. This only empowers the criminals.
- No Victim Blaming: It’s essential to recognize that sextortion is a crime, and the victim should never be blamed for the actions of the perpetrator, even if explicit content was voluntarily shared.