Sextortion

What is sextortion?
When someone you have met online encourages you to carry out a sexual act in front of your Webcam and then threatens to post a recording of you online or send a copy to friends or family unless you pay them money. This is a form of blackmail known as sextortion.
Why me?
The vast majority of these incidents are perpetrated by professional criminals looking to make easy money. You are most likely to have been targeted because you have visited certain internet sites where these criminals lie in wait for the unwary.
Hundreds of similar cases are reported to UK Law Enforcement each year and thousands more are recorded world wide.

What should I do?

Don’t Panic
The first big step is to recognise you are the ‘victim’ in this and that you may require support to help you through what has happened.

Don’t pay
The choice to pay is yours but experience shows where victims have paid then there is no guarantee that offenders will not still post the recording and are in fact more likely to come back with further demands.

Don’t keep communicating
By replying to these threats it indicates to the criminals that you are someone who may be persuaded to pay their ransom.

Do consider getting support
You can contact us via 101 to report what has happened to you. This is particularly important if you are struggling to cope with the issue. If you are under 18 consider speaking to a trusted adult and additional support is also available via Child Exploitation Online Protection. (CEOP)