The Bakersfield Police Department warned residents Thursday about an uptick in “sextortion” schemes primarily affecting teenage boys locally.
A scammer will contact victims pretending to be a stranger and compliment them in an effort to start an intimate relationship. Eventually, the suspect will send nude pictures and have the victim send intimate pictures in return, BPD wrote in a news release.
Then, extortionists will threaten to share these photos with the victim's family and friends on social media if a person doesn’t pay high amounts of money to bar the release of the photos, BPD wrote.
Some suicide deaths around the country happened after victims suffered this crime, police wrote. And, scammers might renege on their agreement and still distribute photos after payment happens.
“It doesn’t matter what has happened,” according to the Internet Crimes Against Children task force. “If you have been a victim, please get help.”
BPD recommends the following tips to stay safe:
- Stop responding to strangers asking for nude pictures.
- Take screenshots of the conversation.
- Report and block users.
- Tell someone what happened.
- Don’t send more images.
- Don’t pay any money.
- Don’t respond to demands.
- Don’t continue the conversation.