{"id":16306,"date":"2018-06-06T15:49:44","date_gmt":"2018-06-06T23:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.spokeo.com\/compass\/?p=16306"},"modified":"2022-04-13T12:13:29","modified_gmt":"2022-04-13T20:13:29","slug":"latest-blackmail-scams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.spokeo.com\/compass\/latest-blackmail-scams\/","title":{"rendered":"Beware These 3 New Blackmail Scams"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s seems like these days every way you turn someone is trying to scam you, especially online. But the latest blackmail scams aren’t necessarily online. The first one comes right to your mailbox.<\/p>\n

1. The Bitcoin Blackmail Scheme<\/h2>\n

A new scam targets men by playing on their guilty consciences. In a letter that arrives at your home<\/a>, someone claims to know that you’ve been cheating on your wife. The letter writer then threatens to reveal your infidelity to your wife and friends.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Even if you’ve never been unfaithful to your wife \u2014 or don’t have a wife at all \u2014 the blackmailer will accuse you of this misdeed and threaten to tell your significant other.<\/p>\n

In exchange for his silence, the blackmailer then demands anywhere from $2,000 to $8,000 in bitcoin. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, “bitcoin<\/a>” refers to a new type of digital currency that’s very hard to trace because it’s not managed by traditional banks. Instead, the money moves online through a worldwide virtual accounting system. The scammer will even give you step-by-step instructions on how to use bitcoin if you don’t already know.<\/p>\n

Whatever you do, don’t pay the ransom.<\/em> Instead report the letter to the police and file a complaint with the FBI<\/a>. That way law enforcement can track the criminals.\u00a0The good news is that you’re not being targeted. Hundreds of these letters go out at a time,\u00a0mostly to affluent neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

2. “Sextortion”<\/h2>\n

If you’re feeling frisky, be careful to whom you send intimate photos or participate in video cam sessions.\u00a0The \u201csextortionist\u201d will want to \u201cget naughty\u201d on cam right away or exchange explicit photos. Without your knowledge, they\u2019ll record the session and then threaten to send the session or photos to your friends and family unless you pay up. And because so many people have a public list of friends list on\u00a0Facebook and other social media, the (s)cammer can easily carry out the threat.<\/p>\n

So, if you plan to engage in risky online behavior, at least lock down your Facebook profile. If your account is private, would-be blackmailers don’t have access to your friends list or other personal information.<\/p>\n

3. Underage Blackmail Scam<\/h2>\n

In a twist on the usual sextortion scam, after you exchange explicit photos with the scammer, a fake mother or father will contact you<\/a> and claim you’ve been exchanging inappropriate material with a minor. They’ll demand money for “therapy” and other damages to their “child” in exchange for them not going to the cops. They might even pretend to be law enforcement and demand money in exchange for not arresting you.<\/p>\n

How to Fight Back<\/h2>\n

In addition to the tips already listed, watchdog organizations like\u00a0ScamNet<\/a> recommend the following procedures:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Don’t send money.<\/strong>\u00a0If you do, they’ll just keep asking for more. Break off contact immediately if you’re threatened and fight back.<\/li>\n
  2. Take screenshots<\/strong> of all social media accounts and contact information (Skype ID, phone numbers, etc.).<\/li>\n
  3. Make copies<\/strong> of threatening letters.<\/li>\n
  4. Save all incriminating communications offline,<\/strong>\u00a0such as emails and chat sessions.<\/li>\n
  5. Block the scammer<\/strong> on every device and platform.<\/li>\n
  6. Deactivate your Facebook account for two weeks.<\/strong> Change your username and make sure you don’t “friend” anyone you don’t actually know.<\/li>\n
  7. If the blackmailer has an explicit video,<\/strong> search YouTube<\/a>\u00a0for your full name in quotes. They often name these videos “John Smith scandal” or “John Smith <explicit sex act>.” If you find the video, flag it as inappropriate so that YouTube can take it down.<\/li>\n
  8. Report everything to the police and the FBI<\/a>.<\/strong><\/li>\n
  9. Protect your online data<\/a>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Protection is Prevention<\/h2>\n

    The trick to avoiding blackmail scams is to be proactive about knowing who you’re interacting with on- and offline. Remember that anyone can fall for blackmail scams, no matter how educated or savvy they might be.<\/p>\n

    Reverse search photos.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Scammers tend to steal photos from others, and they almost always have maybe only one photo of themselves. So, run a search on Tin Eye<\/a> or Google Image Search<\/a> to see if the photo is stolen.<\/p>\n

    Run a reverse phone lookup.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0If you manage to get a phone number from this person, run\u00a0a reverse phone lookup<\/a>\u00a0to see who really owns the number.<\/p>\n

    Search their\u00a0email address or username in public records.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Run\u00a0a person search<\/a>\u00a0on a public record database to uncover other social media profiles. You might be shocked to find they own numerous accounts.<\/p>\n

    We all make mistakes, but try to minimize who makes money from them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    It’s seems like these days every way you turn someone is trying to scam you, especially online. But the latest blackmail scams aren’t necessarily online. The first one comes right…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":16368,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[612,614],"tags":[464,100,342,444,466],"class_list":["post-16306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guides","category-safety","tag-blackmail-scams","tag-internet-safety","tag-online-safety","tag-online-scams","tag-scams"],"yoast_head":"\nBeware These 3 New Blackmail Scams - The Compass Blog | Digital Identity and People Search | Spokeo<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It's seems like these days every way you turn someone is trying to scam you, especially online. 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