Nude photo blackmail

More and more young people are victims of sextortion

"It is particularly alarming that those affected are getting younger and younger," says Birgit Satke, head of the advice team.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com, Krone KREATIV)

More and more children and young people in Austria are being blackmailed with nude photos or videos via social media. 327 such counseling sessions were conducted by Rat auf Draht last year, the helpline announced in a press release on Wednesday. 

From 2022 to 2023, there was already an increase of 29 percent in cases of sextortion. However, the number of unreported cases is likely to be much higher. Rat auf Draht warns that many do not confide in anyone out of shame.

According to Rat auf Draht's analysis, there are still significantly more boys and young men among the victims. Around 72 percent of conversations fall into this group. However, the proportion of girls and women has increased significantly compared to 2023. In 2023, the ratio was still 83% male to 17% female callers.

"It is particularly alarming that those affected are getting younger and younger," said Birgit Satke, head of the counseling team. The biggest increase of 178 percent in the number of consultations was recorded by Rat auf Draht in the age group of 11 to 14-year-old girls and boys.

Blackmailers' scam always the same
The blackmailers' approach always remains the same: children and young people are approached or contacted by attractive people via social networks such as Instagram, Snapchat or TikTok, but also increasingly via dating platforms or in online games. They flatter their future victims and feign sexual intentions. They send nude pictures or videos of themselves and then ask them to do the same. If the children and young people respond, the mood changes abruptly and they are asked to pay money.

"Otherwise, the perpetrators threaten to post the material on social networks or send it directly to friends or groups of friends of the victims. Meanwhile, as a sign that the blackmailers are serious, a picture or video is often sent to a person or specific group in advance to emphasize the demand," said Satke.

Criminals are relying more and more on AI
What is new, however, is that criminals are increasingly relying on artificial intelligence. "This is happening in two ways. Firstly, they use AI-generated images or videos to lure young people into traps. In other words, the person who is writing to the victim and who can be seen does not really exist. On the other hand, the perpetrators also use AI-generated images that are supposed to show the alleged victim in order to blackmail them," explained Satke.

The suffering, shame and feelings of guilt of those affected are just as high as with real images, said the expert after evaluating the counseling sessions.

How those affected should react
The experts urgently recommend all those affected to defend themselves. "Despite the shock and despair, it is very important not to respond to the demands and not to pay", said Satke. In many cases, paying the demands does not prevent publication, but is seen as an invitation to try again at a later date.

Contact with the perpetrators should be broken off immediately and evidence, such as screenshots of blackmail chats, should be secured. If images or videos have already been published, the respective platform should be notified immediately. It is also advisable to file a report with the police.

Online tools against sextortion
According to Rat auf Draht, two online tools can help prevent further publication of nude photos. The two websites takeitdown.ncmec.org for people under the age of 18 and stopncii.org for adults prevent intimate images from being uploaded to many platforms. However, the images and videos must still be stored on a device in order to be used.

"A digital fingerprint of the photo or video is created on the device and transmitted to the service, which enables the online platforms to identify intimate images or videos and prevent them from being published," explains Satke. The images remain on the user's device and are not uploaded.