Teenager falls victim to sexual blackmail after making a mistake

A growing number of Australians are being targeted by the global sextortion scam, with over 1700 incidents documented from January to March 2023, according to Australia's eSafety Commissioner. Young men between 18-24 are the most at risk of being approached, with teen boys also particularly vulnerable. Scammers primarily use Instagram and Snapchat as their initial means of making contact. To prevent sextortion, teenagers should set social media accounts to private, not send any videos or pictures to someone they haven’t met in real life, and never share intimate photos or videos of themselves or anyone else. If targeted by sextortion, it's vital not to engage or pay, but instead report it to the platform and to eSafety.gov.au.