In today’s episode, we explore the alarming rise of sextortion and its devastating impact on individuals, families, and communities. We discuss recent cases involving Nigerian brothers sentenced for their role in the tragic death of a Michigan teenager, the emergence of sadistic sextortion targeting children in Australia, and new scams using personal information to exploit victims. Together, we shine a light on this critical issue, emphasize the importance of online safety, and share resources for those affected.
Those worried their intimate images will be shared can use a tool such as StopNCII, which creates a digital hash, or fingerprint, of images that is shared with companies such as Instagram, Snapchat, OnlyFans and Pornhub so they can block them from being posted to the platform.
Article URLs:
- Nigerian brothers whose sextortion plot led to death of Michigan teen get 17 years: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/sep/06/sextortion-samuel-samson-ogoshi-jordan-demay?CMP=oth_b-aplnews_d-1
- Australian police are warning about ‘sadistic sextortion’. Here’s how it works, and the red flags for parents: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/sep/07/australia-federal-police-sadistic-child-sextortion-warning
- Sextortion scam now use your “cheating” spouse’s name as a lure: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/sextortion-scam-now-use-your-cheating-spouses-name-as-a-lure/
- Nigerian brothers Samuel (22) and Samson Ogoshi (20) sentenced to 17 years (210 months) in prison.
- Victim: Jordan DeMay, 17, who died in March 2022.
- Jordan DeMay sent nude photographs after being befriended on social media.
- The brothers demanded $1,000, and Jordan paid $300 before threatening to kill himself.
- Less than 6 hours after the threat, Jordan died.
- FBI tracked communications to the brothers in Nigeria, revealing attempts to extort over 100 individuals.
- Australian police report children as young as 12 being coerced into producing extreme content via ‘sadistic sextortion’.
- Increase of reports of image-based abuse in Australia: 117% in 2022-2023, with sextortion being the most frequently reported form.
- RMIT’s Prof. Nicola Henry noted that intimate partners are often the perpetrators of sextortion.
- Just under 16% of surveyed adults reported experiencing threats to share intimate images, higher than most surveyed countries except the USA.
- Victim Rohan Cosgriff, age 17, died in 2022 after being pressured into sending intimate photos.
- Recent sextortion emails target spouses, claiming infidelity and demanding payments between $500 to $5,000.
- First appearance of the new sextortion variant noted about three weeks prior to the article’s publication.
- Profits from sextortion scams were over $50,000 in the first week of their appearance in 2018.
- Recipients of new sextortion emails reported names used that aren’t commonly associated with them, including maiden names and pet names.
Leave a Reply