Sextortion

Mental health support for survivors of sextortion, cyber exploitation, revenge porn, and online coercion.

Being targeted by sextortion is a form of manipulation and victimization, not a failure of judgment. Sextortion happens when someone threatens to share intimate images or personal information unless you pay money, send more images, or comply with other demands. It can happen to anyone, including teens, and often involves quickly escalating urgency, shame, and fear that make it hard to know where to turn.

We help adults and teens who are navigating current or previous:

  • Threats related to intimate images or personal information

  • Shame, fear, or isolation following an exploitation attempt

  • Cyberbullying and online harassment

  • The aftermath of financial or emotional extortion online

  • Rebuilding a sense of safety and trust online and offline

If you are a child, immediately tell a trusted adult.

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If you are a child, immediately tell a trusted adult. *

What This Might Sound or Look Like

  • Someone who seemed trustworthy online, moving quickly toward exchanging photos

  • Demands to send more photos, or they’ll post the ones they already have

  • Claims they’ve already sent images to your friends or family, and will stop only if you pay

  • A countdown, such as one hour to send money or everyone sees it

  • Threats that escalate quickly, even persisting after you have completed requests

How You Might Feel

Panicked and trapped, like there’s no way out that doesn’t make things worse. Ashamed, even though you did nothing wrong. Afraid to tell a parent, partner, or friend. Distrustful of yourself for engaging with the person in the first place. Exhausted from constantly checking whether something has been posted.

If any of this feels familiar, what happened to you was designed to make you feel trapped, and panicked. Therapy can help you work through the regret and fear, rebuilding a sense of safety, online and offline.

If you or a loved one is currently being threatened, you are not alone and it is not your fault. Read further for next steps and resources.

Next Steps You Can Take

Stop all contact and payment — paying rarely stops the threats and often invites more. Save screenshots, usernames, and messages before blocking, since they can help if you file a report. Report the account to the platform you are using to communicate, and whatever banking platform you used. If a minor is involved, refer to the NCMEC CyberTipline. Other scammers may reach out to you, offering services to “get your money back.” This is not something that we have ever seen result in the retrieval of any assets after payments have been completed. Only your bank (whose number you call independently) has a short window to reverse any transactions within a short time window.

Talk to a therapist about the shame and anger that can arise with this — you are not the one who did something wrong. In-person sessions are available in Plymouth, Michigan, and telehealth is available anywhere in Michigan.

Reputable Resources

FBI Extortion information and reporting options

NCMEC CyberTipline, to report sextortion involving a minor, call 1-800-843-5678.

StopNCII.org, a free tool to help prevent intimate images from being shared further

FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, to report financial sextortion and online exploitation

https://stopncii.org/resources-and-support/ compiles lists of common communication platforms that can host non-consensual intimate images, and where you can make reports, and requests for removal of intimate images.

Youth-Even though we have been taught our whole lives that the internet is permanent, there are actually ways to remove unwanted images and documents from the internet. For incidents of CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Material) involving minors online, make a request to remove sensitive files at takeitdown.ncmec.org.

Adults with incidents of unapproved sexual images online, or instances like Revenge Porn, visit the STOPNCII website for helplines and other resources.

Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program’s Sextortion Victim Resource

Ready to talk? Book a free 15-minute intro call.

office@solacepointmentalhealth.com

(810) 214-2661

You may also find these pages helpful: Scams and Sexual Assault & Trafficking.