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Victims of the "sextortion" scheme, usually children and teens, are manipulated to photograph or video material for extortionists.
"After receiving the sexually explicit content from the child, the offender threatens to release that compromising material unless the victim produces additional explicit material," said the FBI in issuing the warning to parents, educators, caregivers, and children.
In a separate advisory, New York State Police said, "Scammers obtain emails and other personal information purchased illegally on the dark web to contact victims, stating that they have the victim’s personal information."
They often include a photo of the victim’s residence and instructions to make payment in Bitcoin to avoid repercussions.
The scammers will also threaten to publicly embarrass and convince the victim that they have installed software on their phone, tablet, or computer, have access to their personal accounts, and are tracking their internet use.
To get the victim to act quickly, the scammer claims they possess images of the victim viewing pornographic material and threatens to disclose this content to everyone in their contact list within 24‐48 hours unless they pay in Bitcoin to have the content deleted.
Despite these claims, the scammer cannot access the victim’s device or personal information.
If you receive one of these emails, do not engage or share personal information such as birthdates, phone numbers, social security numbers, or any financial information.
Victims should block the sender, delete the email, and report it through the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at www.ic3.gov.
If someone believes that they are the victim of sextortion or identity theft, the FBI encourages them to report it by contacting their local FBI office or calling 1‐800‐CALL‐FBI.
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