Snap research shows teens being targeted by sextortion schemes

Snap the company behind Snapchat has conducted a survey of 6,000 teens and young people from Australia, France, Germany, India, the UK and the US – they found that 65% of respondents said they or their friends had been targeted by sextortion schemes.

What is sextortion?

Sextortion is a form of blackmail – it involves threatening to publish sexual information, photos or videos about someone. This may be to extort money or force the victim to do something against their will.

How does it happen?

Young people are targeted in online ‘catfishing’ scams or are hacked by criminals who steal explicit personal imagery or other private information. This content is then used to threaten or blackmail young people.

How to avoid scams and hacks

We have recently run a webinar (Protecting from online scams and hacks) – you can view the recording and take a look at our resource page.

What are Snap doing to protect young people on Snapchat?

Snap have updated their block and reporting tools so that Snapchatters can report sextortion. They are also adding new episodes to their Safety Snapshot Series.

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Two-thirds of Gen Z targeted for online “sextortion” – New Snap research – WeProtect Global Alliance