PHOENIX — The FBI says "sextortion" reports are on the rise nationwide including in Arizona.
Sextortion is when a predator threatens to distribute a person’s sexually explicit videos or photos if the victim does not provide them with more videos, photos or money. Victims can be anyone of all ages, but the crime has specifically been targeted toward minors more recently, according to the FBI.
Between October 2022 to March 2023, the agency saw a 20% increase in sextortion reports nationwide compared to the same timeframe the year prior.
“Really, with the increase in technology and increase of younger children having access to smartphones, we’ve really seen an increase in our reports,” said Emily Steele, a special agent with the FBI.
Steele said they typically see these crimes happening through Snapchat or Instagram, as well as Discord, a chatroom app for gamers.
“Also on Roblox,” Steele continued. “Even though Roblox is for the younger generation, I’ve had victims as young as six be victims of sextortion.”
The FBI says in some cases, victims of sextortion end up self-harming or go as far as dying by suicide. From October 2021 to March 2023, the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations say they received more than 13,000 reports of online financial sextortion of minors that involved at least 12,600 victims, including many boys, which also led to at least 20 who died by suicide.
Maricela Savalas, a victim specialist with the FBI, said there is help for victims.
“You're not alone in this and if you have that concern, where if you don't report it, what's going to happen? Oftentimes these predators, or these sextortionists, they have more than one child they're talking to,” Savalas said.
The FBI encourages parents to talk to kids about the dangers of the internet and have open conversations with them. Savalas also urges parents to not victim-blame if their kid ends up falling victim to a crime like this.
“Just stop. Take a breath, have that conversation with them and say, ‘Alright, let's get through this, we're going to figure this out.’ For the children, it’s making sure they know they're not at fault for this,” Savalas said.
Reporting the crime is also key, and could be done through the local police, directly to the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or visiting tips.fbi.gov. Crimes can also be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
