(Photo by Ben Warren on Unsplash)
American kids are killing themselves because of “sextortion” scams, according to a new study documented by a report from Breitbart.
Although the practice has been around for years already, is now is called the “fastest-growing crime targeting kids in the West,” the report said.
The report explains details are from the recent study by the Network Contagion Research Institute.
What it described is a cybercriminal organization in West Africa known as “Yahoo Boys” whose members pose as young girls online. They then coerce kids and teens into sending them explicit images of themselves.
They then demand ongoing payoffs, under the threat of widely distributing those images online, to the victim’s family, friends and others.
While the activity has been documented on Instagram, Snapchat and other platforms for some time, the damage is increasing, the report said.
(Photo by Christopher Campbell on Unsplash)
NCRI analyst Paul Raffile said in the report that the actions are a “transnational crime threat that is actually causing a significant number of American deaths.”
Victims have committed suicide when faced with the extortionists’ demands.
Breitbart reported, "In August, for example, two Nigerian men were extradited to the U.S. to face charges involving a sextortion scam that authorities said resulted the suicide of a 17-year-old high school student in Michigan, according to a report by NBC News.”
In November, another Nigerian was indicted for using such tactics to commit $2.5 million in wire fraud.
Further, the “Yahoo Boys” were posting online “training videos” to teach others how to target and victimize teens.
An online script, for example, suggested the criminals act “like a real girl,” then when they obtain images, to threaten, “You ready to comply with me? I will make you so miserable that you can’t even think … I will send your nude to lots of people online … Do you want this to happen – yes or no. If you do not want it to happen you will have to pay me.”
”How much you got there[?] If you are thinking of 200$ forget it I’m posting your nude and gonna make you die in pain,” the script suggested.
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