INTERNET BLACKMAIL

From Cyprus Police:

One of the ways internet criminals use to steal money or to achieve their purpose is the blackmail method. Internet blackmail is widespread in modern societies. Victims of it, individuals of all sexes and ages, with the most vulnerable population, however, younger ages.

Often internet blackmail, is sexual in nature. Survivors chatting with their potential victims on various online platforms persuade them to send naked photos or videos of similar content to them.  

From that moment onwards, Golgotha ​​begins on the victims. Survivors begin extortion. By threatening the victims that they will publish the material they have acquired, they demand various rewards. These may be the sending of other similar material, the payment of a specific amount of money or even a meeting between them.

To protect yourself from such situations and extortion, read here .

But what if we have already been the victims of such blackmail? How can we react, protect and get rid of blackmail? 


SIMPLE THAN NO #SayNo

Resist the extortionist's claims. Say No. Do not send other photos. Do not pay anything. Do not accept meeting him. 

Besides, you never know if the blacksmith will keep his promise. You do not know if extortion will stop if you bend. Many times the perpetrators, after they get what they ask, come back asking for more. There are also cases where, despite the fact that the blacksmiths got what they asked for, they published the material they held.

But if he has already succumbed to extortion and paid the perpetrators, he immediately checks if they have received the money. If they have received them, note where they have been received. If not, immediately cancel the transaction. 


STORE DATA AND DOCUMENTSThe first thing you have to do when you accept blackmail is to stay calm and collect all the elements that can help locate the perpetrator.

  Do not erase anything from your device 
  Save all the messages you exchanged with the blacksmith, even the photos or videos you sent it 
  Save screen shots from all the conversations you had with the extortioner 
  Mark some of the information you can to find or gave you the blacksmith. For example: 
  The details of the online platform that your conversations took (name, user ID, URL) 
  The method of payment of the money proposed and the one that asked to send the money. 
  After collecting all available information, any communication with the blacksmith stopped. Make Block. To see how to block a user,see here . 
 Check out other communication platforms or social media accounts, whether the actor is trying to communicate with you through them. 
➢ Report the incident to the medium or platform you used to communicate with the offender. See here . You can also ask this medium to delete / move all your photos or videos from the platform and the search engines. 
 You can also disable your account on that medium. But be careful not to close or clear the account. Disable only. In this way all the data can be preserved and the Police are assisted in investigating the case. Also this way, when this adventure ends, you can reset your account without losing your online memories.

SEARCHING HELPING
As mentioned above, it is particularly important to maintain our composure if we find ourselves in such a blackmail situation. Though this may be difficult due to the strong psychological pressure exerted on the victim by the whole situation.

In such cases, the victim should know that there are many people who can and want to help. First of all, the Police, which can be alerted either by visiting the nearest Police Station or online through the online e-crime complaint platform . 

Despite the above, many victims, and especially the minor victims, are reluctant to contact the Police directly. However, it is imperative to ask for help and support. In such cases, it is good to appeal to people who trust. These could be the parents or other members of their family, or even friends or parents of their friends, teachers or coaches, and more generally people of their trust.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW IF YOU ARE THE PERSON WHO INVOLVES HELP
If you are the one that a minor victim trusts. If a minor has spoken to you about the problem he is facing, remember that your attitude plays an important role in the psychological stability of the victim. You need to know that the victim feels trapped and there is no way out. But you must know that this is not true and that you, you are the person who can help. 


Advice for underage assistants
Although you are a minor and some friend of yours tells you that he has been the victim of such an internet blackmail, he talked with him / her about how he feels. Listen carefully that he has to tell you. He advised him / her to talk to an adult or to immediately report the case to the Police. 

Remember that anyone who blacks out your boyfriend or girlfriend is committing an offense and should be notified by the Police to investigate it.

Tips for Adult Assistants

If a minor who trusted you communicates with you and tells you that he is possibly a victim of internet blackmail or harassment, do not hesitate to give your help. Take control and try to encourage the child. Make sure you feel comfortable and secure with you. Show him that he is not responsible for the whole situation. If you are not his guardian, urge him to talk to his parents about the subject. If necessary, you offer mediation to inform your parents. 

To achieve the above you can use the following tips: 
  Make sure that the victim knows that he can trust you 
  Give the victim time to tell you what he feels. Listen carefully to what he has to say.
  Do not judge the victim in any way 
  Ask the victim if there is something specific that you would like to do 
  Assure the victim that he is ok with you if he wants to talk to another person about the matter. Help if there is a need to arrange a meeting with this person

In your conversation with the victim, about the problem you are facing, remember that you are the first to learn about the problem and how you are that person who trusts. For these two reasons, you should conduct a risk assessment. 

There are three sections that you should cover: 

1.  Learn what material the victim sent to the extortionist: 
  Was it photographs, videos or other personal information? 
  Are you ashamed of the content of this material? If so, why? 
 Has the  information given to him used to identify the victim with the blacksmith?

2.  Find out if the victim ever met the blackmailer 
  Find out what the victim knows about the perpetrator 
  Ask if at the meeting the victim felt threatened or felt uncomfortable in any way

3.  Learn how this material was sent 
  Asked the victim to begin his conversation with the blackmailist 
  On which platform the first contact was made and continued their conversations 
  Find out if it is possible, how many people could see the material sent Victim 



If you ever find yourself in such a situation, always remember that the safest way to stop extortion passes through the Police. That is why he helped or urged the victim to denounce the case. Police investigators have the knowledge, experience and education to deal with the situation.