Blackmailing people into doing things like sending you nude photos or money is illegal.
Distributing nude photos of people who have not given permission is also illegal and is called digital sexual violence.
If you or someone you know is communicating with someone who is threatening you, we recommend that:
- Save your communications and any information you can think of (such as their friends list and username).
- Stop the communication.
- Get support from professionals. People who experience sextortation or romance scams can experience great distress, humiliation, shame and worry.
- Contact the police. The police have an international collaboration, which means that even if the person you are communicating with is abroad or hiding behind an unknown username, they can still find out who they are.
- If the person in question is in possession of nude photos or other imagery that you do not want to be distributed, the distribution can be restricted or stopped.
