Citing an “explosion” of online sextortion cases involving children, federal authorities issued an unusual national public safety alert on Monday in an effort to intervene in increasingly aggressive schemes linked to more than a dozen suicides in the past year.
At least 3,000 victims, mostly boys, have been identified as targets in operations originating largely from outside the United States, in which children are coerced into sending explicit images online and then extorted for the money.
Federal officials, describing “desperate” accounts of young victims, said the number of incidents in the first six months of 2022 represented a 1,000% increase from the same period last year.
On a variety of online platforms, from gaming and social media sites to chat rooms, predators often use fake female accounts to target boys, between the ages of 14 and 17. Some victims are as young as 10, the FBI said.
Much of the schemes are traced to the West African countries of Nigeria and Ivory Coast, officials said.
The FBI, along with the Department of Homeland Security and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, issued the alert ahead of the holidays, urging parents to get involved as children should spend more time online, away of the classroom.
Following:Ex-Kentucky principal gets 9-year-old for child pornography from student phone
FBI Director Christopher Wray described the spate of incidents as “a horrific increase”, which does not take into account the countless number of victims who are “afraid to come forward”.
“Victims may feel like there is no way out,” Wray said. “It’s up to all of us to reassure them that they are not in trouble, that there is hope and that they are not alone.”
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr., head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, called on parents and caregivers to help detect false identities and advise children to “reject any attempt to obtain private material”.
Typically, officials said, predators convinced their targets to provide video or photos. Once transmitted, offenders threaten to release the compromising material unless victims send money or gift cards through various payment apps.
Pressure campaigns, officials said, often begin within minutes of the photos or videos being transmitted. Typically, requests involve hundreds of dollars or even more. Some of the victims sought help from their parents to help them pay, while the most desperate committed suicide out of shame.
“This is a growing crisis and we’ve seen sextortion completely devastate children and families,” said Michelle DeLaune, CEO of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. “The best defense against this crime is to talk to your children about what to do if they are targeted online.”
The FBI has urged victims and their families to report illicit contact, either by calling local offices or calling the office’s hotline at 1-800-CALL-FBI. Reports can also be made online at tips.fbi.gov.
Before granting extortion demands, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said victims and their families should seek advice.
“Cooperate or pay rarely stops the ongoing blackmail and harassment,” the group said, adding that help is available to remove images from the internet.
The FBI said the recent increase in such incidents stands out, distinguished by its predominant focus on young boys – rather than older victims – and the extortion process.
Officials described instances in which panicked victims “woke their parents up” to help them make payments or respond to online offenders.
0 Comments