More than 3,000 minor victims have been targeted in the past year across the United States in incidents of being coerced into sending explicit images of themselves online and then extorted for money.

Federal authorities, including the FBI and Homeland Security investigators, call this crime “financial sextortion.”

Over the past year, according to a news release, law enforcement has received over 7,000 reports with the victims being primarily boys that resulted in more than a dozen suicides.

A large percentage of these schemes originate outside of the United States, and primarily in West African countries such as Nigeria and Ivory Coast, federal authorities say.

“The fact is that the many victims who are afraid to come forward are not even included in those numbers,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The FBI is here for victims, but we also need parents and caregivers to work with us to prevent this crime before it happens and help children come forward if it does. Victims may feel like there is no way out — it is up to all of us to reassure them that they are not in trouble, there is hope, and they are not alone.”

PARENTS NEED TO HELP

With many children now on winter break from school, the FBI is asking parents and caregivers to engage with children about these schemes.

“This is a growing crisis and we’ve seen sextortion completely devastate children and families,” said Michelle DeLaune, CEO of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. “The best defense against this crime is to talk to your children about what to do if they’re targeted online. We want everyone to know help is out there and they’re not alone.”

Financial sextortion schemes occur in online environments where young people feel most comfortable — using common social media sites, gaming sites, or video chat applications that feel familiar and safe, the news release states. On these platforms, online predators often use fake female accounts and target minor males, between 14 to 17 years old but the FBI has interviewed victims as young as 10 years old.

Through deception, predators convince the young person to produce an explicit video or photo. Once predators acquire the images, they threaten to release the compromising material unless the victim sends money or gift cards. Often the predators demand payment through a variety of peer-to-peer payment applications. In many cases, however, predators release the images even if payments are made. The shame, fear, and confusion that victims feel when they are caught in this cycle often prevents them from asking for help or reporting the abuse.

Homeland security official Steven K. Francis said his agents will continue to exhaust every resource to identify, locate and apprehend predators.

“The sexual exploitation of children is a deplorable crime,” Francis said. “Criminals who lurk in platforms on the internet are not as anonymous as they think.”

Francis said his agency uses cutting-edge technology to try to catch the offenders.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. said the protection of children is “society’s most sacred duty.”

“It calls on each of us to do everything we can to keep kids from harm, including ensuring the threats they face are brought into the light and confronted,” Polite said. “Armed with the information in this alert message, parents, caregivers, and children themselves should feel empowered to detect fake identities, take steps to reject any attempt to obtain private material, and if targeted, have a plan to seek help from a trusted adult.”

WHAT CAN

PARENTS DO

What if you or your child is a victim? If young people are being exploited, they are victims of a crime and should report it. Contact your local FBI field office, call 1-800-CALL-FBI, or report it online at tips.fbi.gov.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) has outlined steps parents and young people can take if they or their child are a victim of sextortion, including:

• Remember, the predator is to blame, not your child or you.

• Get help before deciding whether to pay money or otherwise comply with the predator. Cooperating or paying rarely stops the blackmail and continued harassment.

• Report the predator’s account via the platform’s safety feature.

• Block the predator and do not delete the profile or messages because that can be helpful to law enforcement in identifying and stopping them.

• Let NCMEC help get explicit images of you off the internet.

• Take a moment to learn how sextortion works and how to talk to your children about it. Information, resources, and conversation guides are available at fbi.gov/StopSextortion.

• Ask for help. This can be a very complex problem and may require help from adults or law enforcement.

• If children don’t feel that they have adults in their corner, they can reach out to NCMEC for support at gethelp

@ncmec.org or call NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST.