On April 29, LONDON (Reuters) – In response to an upsurge in financially motivated sexual extortion instances, including those that occur in schools, the National Crime Agency (NCA) of Britain stated on Monday that it had sent an unprecedented alert to hundreds of thousands of education professionals.
According to the NCA, there has been a surge in “sextortion” cases worldwide, in which victims are threatened with the release of compromising images—whether authentic or phony—if they don’t pay to stop them.
All age groups are vulnerable, but the NCA reported that a significant number of incidents included teenage boys, prompting it to advise educators on how to recognize the warning indications of abuse.
“The crime of sextortion is heartless. Victims and lives that could be lost in the process are of no regard to those who commit these crimes. James Babbage, the NCA’s director general for threats, stated in a statement that “their only incentive is money.
“We are asking education professionals to help us raise awareness about this crime type, which is sadly increasing across the world.”
This month, a politician from the Conservative Party of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak resigned from the group after admitting to giving a stranger he met on a dating app his coworkers’ private phone numbers.
William Wragg warned politicians to exercise caution in their online dealings, saying he felt compromised after sending private images of himself to the unidentified party.
