The FBI is raising alarm bells about a disturbing increase in scammers using “sextortion” schemes to trick numerous kids into producing nudes or sexual videos.
At least 3,000 underage victims, many of them boys, fell for sextortion schemes this past year, the FBI said in a national public safety alert. More than a dozen victims died by suicide.
“The FBI has seen a horrific increase in reports of financial sextortion schemes targeting minor boys—and the fact is that the many victims who are afraid to come forward are not even included in those numbers,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement.
Sextortion involves duping a victim into sending nudes or performing a sexual activity that's recorded. The scammer then threatens to release the compromising information unless the victim pays up.
Lately, the predators behind these blackmail schemes have been targeting teenage boys by using social media, games, and messaging apps. They’ll pose as a young girl and try to trick victims into sharing a nude. The predators can also manipulate victims into performing a sexual activity over a video chat while secretly recording it all.
“Often the predators demand payment through a variety of peer-to-peer payment applications. In many cases, however, predators release the images even if payments are made,” the FBI said. Targeted victims are usually between the ages of 14 and 17, but some victims have been as young as 10 years old.
The FBI warned the public about the danger back in April, but the agency’s latest warning indicates the problem has only worsened. This past year, US law enforcement has received over 7,000 reports connected to sextortion schemes targeting minors, the FBI said.
“As many children enter winter break this holiday season, the FBI and our partners implore parents and caregivers to engage with their kids about financial sextortion schemes so we can prevent them in the first place,” the agency added.
According to the FBI, many of the predators behind these sextortion schemes are based outside of the US and reside in West African countries such as Nigeria and Ivory Coast. On Monday, however, the San Jose Police Department also announced it had arrested the suspect behind a sextortion scheme, which led to the suicide of a 17-year-old. The suspect, a 25-year-old man named Jonathan Kassi, hails from Reseda, California.
“Suspect Kassi sexually exploited children online utilizing the usernames ‘emillysmith’ and ‘kassijonathan’ on various social media application,” the San Jose Police Department added. The FBI's advisory has more tips for victims on responding to the threat.
In Congress, the Senate this week passed a bill from Sens. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) that strengthens federal protections against the sexual abuse of children, including online exploitation. The Preventing Child Sex Abuse Act, in part, addresses sextortion schemes by clarifying that the definition of “sexual activity” with minors doesn’t require physical contact. It now moves to the House.