Another young person has become a victim of so-called sextortion. He paid a four-digit sum.
According to the police headquarters in Offenburg, a young person from the northern district of Ortenau is the victim of so-called “sextortion” on Saturday evening. An unknown person asked him to transfer money. If he does not follow the instructions, intimate pictures that are said to have been created in a previous chat via “Snapchat” would be published. Ultimately, the victim transferred an amount in the lower four-digit range.
“Sextortion” is a form of crime in which the victim is threatened with the publication of nude photos or videos. As in the current case, according to the police, the perpetrators’ approach is “quite simple and insidious”. After the fraudsters have contacted the later victims via social platforms, an intimate picture of the alleged chat partner follows. The victim then receives a request to also send sexual recordings, otherwise the conversation is over. After the recordings have been sent, there is a threat to publish the picture or video on the Internet if the requested amount of money is not paid.
The police advise not to rashly agree to a video chat or the recording of intimate pictures, if in doubt, tape the chat camera, only communicate verbally and observe what is happening. It also advises, “Don’t agree to exposure or intimate dealings via video or chat history if you’ve only known the person for a short time.” The police recommend that anyone who has already been a victim ask the operator of the site to delete the image material: “Don’t transfer any money. The blackmail usually doesn’t stop after the payment.”
