Sextortion
FBI: Hackers target online accounts to steal nude photos
The FBI warns that cybercriminals are targeting adults’ and children’s social media and other online accounts to steal sexually explicit images or videos. As the law enforcement agency explained in a public service announcement published this week, the attackers may use the stolen content to blackmail the victims or try to sell it on criminal […]
Member of The Com sent to prison for blackmail, sextortion
A member of “The Com,” a loose-knit online cybercrime collective that targets children and teenagers, has been sentenced to two years in prison for blackmail and sextortion offenses against nearly 120 victims worldwide. 20-year-old Justin Swaddle from Leeds (known as ‘Epstein’, ‘Rugen’ and ‘Moscow’ on Snapchat, Telegram, and Discord) was first arrested in October 2023 […]
ShinyHunters data leaks fuel $2,000 sextortion email scam
Threat actors are using email addresses exposed in data breaches leaked by the ShinyHunters extortion group to send sextortion emails demanding $2,000 in Bitcoin. The emails claim to come from ShinyHunters and tell recipients that hackers compromised their devices after obtaining their email addresses from breached company databases. However, the messages appear to be sent […]
Sextortionist sentenced to 33 years for targeting 145 children
A Canadian man was sentenced to 33 years in prison after pleading guilty to targeting more than 145 children across the United States, some as young as 6 years old, in an eight-year-long sextortion scheme. 40-year-old Ramanan Pathmanathan pleaded guilty on January 30, 2026, to one count of coercion and enticement of a minor and one count […]
Alabama man pleads guilty to hacking, extorting hundreds of women
A 22-year-old Alabama man pleaded guilty to extortion, cyberstalking, and computer fraud charges after hijacking the social media accounts of hundreds of young women (including minors). Between April 2022 and May 2025, Jamarcus Mosley impersonated the targets’ friends and used other tactics to trick his victims into handing over account recovery codes and passwords. Mosley then […]
Microsoft 365 Admin portal abused to send sextortion emails
The Microsoft 365 Admin Portal is being abused to send sextortion emails, making the messages appear trustworthy and bypassing email security platforms. Sextortion emails are scams claiming that your computer or mobile device was hacked to steal images or videos of you performing sexual acts. The scammers then demand from you a payment of $500 […]