SOARING numbers of online criminals are tricking teens into sending them nude photos before blackmailing them.
Parents and teachers are being urged to warn children after reported cases of “sextortion” jumped from 10,731 in 2022 to 26,718 last year.
GettySoaring numbers of online criminals are tricking teens into sending them nude photos before blackmailing them[/caption]
GCHQJames Babbage, of the National Crime Agency, said sextortion causes ‘immeasurable stress and anguish’[/caption]
The National Crime Agency (NCA) said the “devastating” crime has driven some to suicide.
Boys and young men are most likely to be targeted, usually by criminal gangs worldwide pretending to be girls online.
The NCA’s director general for threats, James Babbage, said: “Sextortion causes immeasurable stress and anguish.”
Security minister Tom Tugendhat said sextortion “destroys lives”.
He added: “It is often driven by highly sophisticated organised crime groups who exploit vulnerable people for profit.
“It’s vital that technology companies take responsibility for the safety of their users by implementing stronger safeguards on their platforms.
“I would urge parents to talk to their children about their use of social media.
“Even sites that many assume to be safe may pose a risk.”
(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)
Related Posts:
- Ex-Vikings LB Rips Payton for Implication He Tricked Team Into McCarthy Trade Sports The Minnesota Vikings drafted quarterback J.J. McCarthy 10th overall, trading up one spot with the New York Jets and surrendering a fourth- and a fifth-rounder to make the deal happen. Minnesota got a sixth-round pick back from New York in return, though the price of the trade was still fairly…
- Urgent warning for anyone using scarily accurate ‘AI death calculator’ News Be warned if you’re testing out an ‘AI death calculator’ (Picture: Getty) The team behind an ‘AI death calculator’ that can predict, well, when you’ll die, issued a stark warning for those keen to find out their life expectancy. Danish researchers unveiled the Life2vec AI chatbot in December. They said…
- Urgent warning over lethal batch of ‘unusually strong’ heroin News Four people have been arrestedafter nine others were rushed to hospital after consuming the drug (Picture: Getty Images) A man has died and at least eight people have been rushed to hospital after a lethal batch of heroin has been sold in North Devon. Four people have been arrested after…
- PG&E CEO: Soaring California power bills poised to start dropping News The head of California’s largest utility, facing mounting scrutiny over surging power bills, said that trend is poised to stop and may soon reverse. PG&E Corp. customers could see bills drop as soon as next year, Chief Executive Officer Patti Poppe said in an interview Thursday. The utility, which serves…
- Four teens killed after high-speed cop chase in stolen SUV News Four Florida teens including a football player died in the high-speed police chase in Florida (Picture: Alachua County Fire Rescue) Four teenagers in a stolen SUV were killed after their vehicle spun out of control in a high-speed cop chase. The pursuit began when the SUV taken from Gainesville, Florida,…