‘Sextortion’: Are your children safe from the growing number of online predators?

Just hours before his untimely death, the life of 16-year-old Murray Dowey from Scotland seemed perfectly ordinary — a night of quality time with his family spent watching television and making plans for an upcoming holiday with friends. Little did his parents know that the following morning their world would be shattered, when Murray became yet another casualty of the sextortion epidemic sweeping the globe.

Murray’s heartbreaking story echoes the fates of other young victims, including a 12-year-old Canadian boy and 16-year-old Jordan DeMay from the US. In all three cases, criminals posing as girls used fake or stolen photos on their social media accounts to flirt with and then lure victims into sharing intimate photos, often by first sharing a fake nude picture of themselves.

Once in possession of the compromising material, the perpetrators unleash a torrent of threats, with demands for payments or additional explicit content, or else public exposure of the sensitive content to the victim’s friends and contacts.

“Sextortion is a sinister tactic that coerces victims into sharing explicit images or videos by preying on their vulnerabilities and exploiting their trust,” explains Anna Collard, senior vice-president of content strategy and an evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa.

“The perpetrators often masquerade as peers or love interests online, only to turn around and threaten to release the compromising material unless the victim complies with their demands for more images, sexual acts or monetary payments.”

Highlighting the urgency of the issue, the Internet Watch Foundation received more reports involving sextortion in the first six months of 2023 than in the entire previous year — a staggering increase of 257%. According to their findings, boys are disproportionately more at risk than girls, but both are in danger of falling victim to these scams.

Who is behind it?

While the modus operandi of sextortion criminals involves the exchange of sexual images, their ultimate aim is money. “Financially motivated sexual extortion is usually carried out by organised crime groups that are 100% motivated by money,” states Collard. “These groups target all ages and genders. However, a large proportion of cases have involved boys aged 14 to 18.”

Operating from various corners of the globe, these criminal syndicates employ systematic and calculated approaches to identify and exploit multiple victims simultaneously. “One prime example is the ‘Yahoo Boys’, a group of West African cybercriminals responsible for the dramatic increase in sextortion targeting minors,” she says. 

The case of DeMay underscores the transnational nature of this criminal enterprise. Law enforcement arrested and extradited two Nigerian brothers to the US to face child sexual exploitation charges. According to DeMay’s mother, the perpetrators relied on scripted tactics, concurrently targeting as many victims as possible.

Why are teens being targeted?

Both girls and boys are falling prey to sexploitation — though girls are more often targeted for nude images of themselves, while boys are generally blackmailed for money. “What is so disturbing is that these criminals have such a deep understanding of adolescent psychology,” says Collard.

Teenagers are particularly vulnerable owing to the amount of time they spend on social media platforms, particularly Instagram. “There’s also a lack of awareness,” she warns. “Many teens are not fully aware of the risks and tactics used in online exploitation. Criminals make them feel ashamed that they’ve done something wrong, whereas they are the victims.”

Added to this is the teens’ emotional vulnerability. “They are often seeking validation and may be more susceptible to flattery and manipulation, such as love-bombing, which should be an immediate red flag,” says Collard. “Also, their cognitive and decision-making skills are still developing, which can lead to poor judgment in risky situations.”

What can be done?

In the wake of this crisis, advocacy groups are rallying for more awareness of the issue, and for appropriate preventive measures to be put in place. “Open and honest conversations about cyber safety and the risks associated with sharing personal information and images online should be encouraged between parents and their children,” Collard recommends. “Cultivating a strong, trusting relationship with teens is crucial, so that they feel comfortable and safe sharing their problems with you.”

Monitoring your children’s online behaviour is also a good idea, coupled with instilling in them a critical attitude towards digital interactions. “Don’t trust strangers online,” she says. “Teens should be cautious about who they interact with and use strong privacy settings on their social media accounts.” Above all, individuals should never share explicit content online.

“Greater awareness will definitely help reduce this form of crime,” says Collard. She believes Meta, the company that owns Instagram, also needs to improve its safety features. “Meta should make teens’ follower and following lists private by default,” she asserts. “On Facebook, users have the option to keep their friends lists private, but this crucial privacy safeguard is glaringly absent for teens on Instagram.”