LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Louisville Metro police have an alert for parents and your kids. The department’s Internet Crimes Against Children’s Unit and the FBI says we are seeing local cases of what is called sextortion targeting teens.
Police say they have had reports of someone representing themselves as a teenage girl reaching out to boys under 18 through Instagram and Snapchat. The person coerces them into sending explicit images of themselves, then extorting them to send money to a cash app.
According to police, if the teens don’t send the money they are threatened that their photos will be leaked to friends, family and classmates.
“The people behind the scheme screen shot peoples instagram account and followers” said Stacy Sanders of the FBI. “Once they receive payment they ask for more money. Whether they receive money or not they will send out these images.”
The FBI says the people behind the scheme appear to be outside of the U.S. which makes cases like this difficult to prosecute.
Authorities are advising parents to monitor their kids’ social media accounts and warn them of this scam. Similar scams are happening to young girls too.
LMPD says there have been 25 cases reported so far. You should reach out to the FBI or police if you are a victim.
Copyright 2022 WAVE. All rights reserved.
