How Often do Sextortionists Follow Through?

In a world of increasing social media use, online blackmail has become a growing issue. Certain apps, like dating platforms, have become more prevalent for scams. 

Some social media platforms can endanger younger, or even underage, individuals. Apps such as Snapchat or WhatsApp can provide some form of anonymity or a way to communicate with a barrier for both parties. 

For many seeking other ways to communicate, an app like Snapchat provides a record-free way to send text or images. While the images and texts are set to disappear after 24 hours, there are still ways to retain the information. It’s possible to take screenshots on Snapchat or any app using the phone’s built-in features.

Conversations and images shared on these platforms may provide what feels like a private means to communicate. The ability to screenshot or screen record (take a full video of a phone or computer screen) can quickly eliminate that desired privacy. While certain apps have become a way for people to send sexual images or nudes, they are made vulnerable with the ability to capture the screen’s contents.

Online sextortion is born out of this flaw, a perceived privacy, that can lead to sextortion scam attempts. These scams can lead to issues of exploited children and their families dealing with threats over explicit images, texts, or videos being used as collateral. However, any person of any age can be a victim of sextortion online.

What Are Sextortion Scams?

A sextortion scam can be perpetrated by someone who is known to the victim but is most likely a stranger. A perpetrator can influence their victim to provide sexual images or material, perhaps even providing some of their own. These materials may have even been exchanged between consenting parties where the materials were leaked to a third party.

Extortionists may threaten to release the explicit images on social media accounts. This scam is often a way for the perpetrator to receive money. 

Sextortionists rely on the fear they create as a means to persuade victims to do as they want. They may threaten to spread the images, videos, or materials to social media or share them with family and friends.

Extortionists may have been directly involved in receiving the materials, with the possibility that they are hackers. A hacker may have intercepted the messages or actively impersonated someone to receive images or video. No matter how the materials were obtained, the threat of releasing them as a form of blackmail makes dealing with scammers potentially dangerous.

Do Sextortionists Follow Through?

Sextorionists may hold their leverage over their victims to obtain something of value in exchange. But how often does a sextortionist follow through with their threats? The good news is that most extortionists don’t follow through and there are a few key reasons why. 

If a sextortionist actually publishes the images or video they lose all leverage they had. They will more than likely lose any chance they had at collecting their ransom. 

Scammers who rely on leverage tactics will no longer have leverage if they make good on their threat. The situations in which a scammer follows through with their online harassment to completion may be out of frustration.

The other reason a sextortionist is unlikely to publish their ransom is the legal ramifications of acting on their threat. While sextortion itself is a crime, there are situations in which acting on the crime can worsen. 

The act of publishing the materials itself could act as a crime on top of the threats. Publishing the materials could garner the attention of their government and, in turn, their local law enforcement. The final result could be that if their victim is a minor, the distribution of that material may dramatically increase the legal implications.

How Do Sextortionists Operate?

Sextortionists act as a blend of a catfish and a scammer to intimidate their victims. By creating a persona outside themselves, they add a layer of anonymity. 

They use your personal information, images, videos, and messages as their ransom to get you to pay them money or return sexual favors. Scammers will often ask for payment through cash apps, another layer that acts as a barrier between you and their true identity. 

Here is how a sextortionist operates:

1. Fake Profiles

A sextortionist will almost always use a fake profile when contacting you. They seek people on dating apps like Tinder, Bumble, and others. Dating apps have a catfish issue, with a reported 10% of dating profiles being fake. 

They may even use social media platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and Facebook. Those on dating apps can find victims who intend to engage strangers. Scammers will use pictures and information from a real person, collecting enough information about them to build an entire persona that is difficult to trace back.

2. First Contact

A sextortionist will communicate with their target through a dating app by attempting to match with them. On social media, they may send a message or a friend request. They may begin the scam immediately or ask to take the conversation to a different platform that is less monitored or regulated.

3. The Enticement

The scammer will try to entice the target by turning the conversation to a sexual tone. They will be relying on the images of their catfished profile to entice the victim into engaging. 

The sextortionist will send compliments and sexual advances and mirror their target on subjects, interests, and even age. The scammer will do whatever they can to hook their target and maintain conversation.

4. Gathering Information

Sextorionists often want to move the conversation to a different platform. This serves two main purposes. A different platform can result in a less monitored conversation than something like a dating app. 

The other platform may also contain more information about their target. The scammer will ask to go to Skype, Facebook, or a platform that can divulge more information about you or their target. This allows the sextortionist to learn more about their target without directly asking for it, which would raise suspicions.

5. Exchange of Images, Videos, or Text

Manipulation is a major tool that a sextortionist will employ in an effort to get their victim to engage in sexual behavior. Sextortionists may coerce someone into providing sexual content by streaming content from a pornography site, even in a live conversation setting. 

Pre-recorded videos can be streamed in real-time through a live chat platform by imitating a webcam. This may convince their target that they are, in fact, really engaging in that behavior in an attempt to get their victim to provide content of their own.

6. Extortion

A sextortionist will record all videos, save images, and save texts through screen recording or screenshots. They will gather as much information as they can about you through social media. 

Scammers will seek out information such as friends, family, and work to begin the process of blackmail. When the sextortionist has sufficient information, they will reveal themselves. They will threaten to release the content unless their demands are met. 

What Can I Do if I’m a Victim of Sextortion?

If you, or someone you know, is a victim of sextortion, there are actions you can take to effectively handle the situation. Oftentimes, a victim of sextortion feels powerless or embarrassed, deciding that it is better to give in to the demands rather than deal with the potential aftermath. 

This impending feeling can lead to victims giving in to the demands, but this creates a vicious cycle. Once the demands of a sextortionist have been met, they will continue to ask for money and continue to threaten you. If demands are met, you’ve been labeled as a source of income.

The best way to stop sextortion is to not pay the scammer, immediately stop all communications, and seek further help. If the scammers have made good on their threats, you can take your sextortion case to local law enforcement, for a local perpetrator, or the FBI to handle successful romance scams. 

If the victim is a minor, you can contact the NCMEC, which handles cases involving children. If money has already been sent, it is important to ensure your bank is contacted. Depending on the extent of the financial breach, it may be necessary to request a new debit or credit card and take further action to protect your accounts from fraudulent activity.

At Digital Forensics Corp, we help stop sextortion through our ability to track digital footprints and prevent the release of images or information. Our dedicated staff is made up of digital forensics engineers, social engineering experts, and lawyers trained in cybercrime. 

We know the tactics of scammers and how to deal with sextortion situations to protect you and your information. If you need immediate help, you can reach us at our sextortion helpline for help in 24 hours or less.

Sources:

Social Media Statistics Details | University of Maine

Catfishing | bulliesout.com

9 Ways to Spot Fake Dating Profiles: From Pictures to Messages | datingadvice.com

Romance Scams | FBI