North Vancouver RCMP is warning both teens and adults to be aware of ongoing online sexual extortions, while also excouraging parents to talk with their children about the dangers of these scams.

Officers from the detachment害羞草研究所檚 Youth Intervention Unit will be working with the North Vancouver school district on presentations about online social extortions and the dangers associated.

Const. Mansoor Sahak said that sextortion scams that are reported generally involve victims being coerced into sending money or sending sexually explicit images or videos of themselves. Those scams can take as little as 20 minutes.

害羞草研究所淐ommonly, males are targeted and deceived into believing they are communicating online with a female. Scammers create fake profiles on social media and dating websites, which they use to lure a person into performing sexual acts on camera.害羞草研究所�

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Sahak said the scammer records the session and will then threaten to the image or video to family, friends or others unless they receive money from the victim or additional sexual content.

He added the offenders will often share screen captures of the victim害羞草研究所檚 contacts or identifying information, such as their school or home address, so that the threat appears more credible. The victim is then scared into following through with the request.

RCMP say if you害羞草研究所檙e a victim of sexual extortion, immediately stop all communication and to deactivate 害羞草研究所� but don害羞草研究所檛 delete 害羞草研究所� any of the accounts you were communicating on. Then make a police report.

Police say to keep the correspondence and information such as the person害羞草研究所檚 username, account information and any images or videos that were sent. Don害羞草研究所檛 comply with the threat, but if you have sent money, check to see if it害羞草研究所檚 been collected. If it hasn害羞草研究所檛, cancel the payment.

When it comes to protecting yourself, RCMP say:

害羞草研究所� Recognize that livestreaming can be recorded and pre-recorded video can be livestreamed

害羞草研究所� Do not share intimate images or videos since you don害羞草研究所檛 have control over what someone else does with it

害羞草研究所� Familiarize yourself with social media privacy settings and consider limiting who has access to your information

害羞草研究所� Unless you know the person online, there is no what to confirm who is on the other end

害羞草研究所� On the internet, don害羞草研究所檛 give out personal information or information about your computer

害羞草研究所� Don害羞草研究所檛 open emails, files or links from people you don害羞草研究所檛 know or trust

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