Sextortion: What to Do Right Now (You Are Not in Trouble)

Quick answer

If someone is threatening to share your intimate images, stop replying, don't pay, don't send anything else, and don't delete the chat. Screenshot everything, then block and report the account. In the US, report to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov and, if you were under 18 in the images, use NCMEC's Take It Down; adults use StopNCII.org. In the UK call police on 101; in the EU use your national police. Paying rarely stops it. You are the victim of a crime and you are not in trouble.

Key numbers

137 a dayreports of financial sextortion received by NCMEC on average in 2025, more than 50,000 in the year, up from more than 36,000 in 2024National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, June 2026
75,000+submissions about sextortion received by the FBI's IC3 in 2025FBI IC3 2025 Internet Crime Report
90%of child victims identified in NCMEC sextortion reports were boys aged 14 to 17Thorn and NCMEC, Trends in Financial Sextortion, June 2024

Someone has intimate images of you, or says they do, and they're demanding money or more images and threatening to send everything to your family, your friends or your school or employer. The clock they set is ticking. Read this slowly. You are the victim of a crime called sextortion. You are not in trouble, you did nothing illegal by trusting someone, and there are specific steps that work.

You are not alone. The FBI received more than 75,000 submissions about sextortion in 2025, and NCMEC, the US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, received an average of 137 reports of financial sextortion every day that year. The people doing this run it like a business, from a script. Their script is known, and so is the way to beat it.

Is this a real threat or a bluff? The two kinds of sextortion

There are two very different situations that both get called sextortion, and the first thing to do is work out which one you're in.

The email that quotes an old password

"I know your password is Summer2019. I installed malware on an adult site you visited and recorded you through your webcam. Send $1,200 in Bitcoin within 48 hours or the video goes to all your contacts."

This is a mass bluff. There is no video. The password is real because it came from an old data breach, not from your device. The FTC's advice: "Stop. Don't pay anything. Delete the message. It's a scam." The UK's National Cyber Security Centre puts it this way: the criminals "do not know if you have a webcam, or know if you've visited adult websites". If you still use that password anywhere, change it and turn on two-factor authentication. Report the email at reportfraud.ftc.gov in the US, or forward it to report@phishing.gov.uk in the UK.

The person you were actually talking to

"I have your video. I'm sending it to everyone on your friends list and your school unless you send $500 right now."

"Pay and I delete everything. You have 10 minutes. Don't test me."

This is financial sextortion. Someone you met on Instagram, Snapchat, a dating app or a game moved fast, swapped or requested intimate images, and then turned. The "girl" was usually a man or a team working from a script, often overseas, and they've already screenshotted your followers list to make the threat feel real. Thorn's analysis of NCMEC reports found that 90% of child victims were boys aged 14 to 17, that Instagram and Snapchat were the most common places first contact happened, and that Cash App and gift cards were the most common payment demands. Adults are targeted the same way. The rest of this guide is for this situation.

What should I do in the first hour if someone is threatening to leak my photos?

In the first hour: stop replying, don't pay, don't send anything else, keep every message, block them, report the account, and tell one person you trust.

Stop responding. Don't negotiate, plead or explain. Every reply tells them you're a live target.
Don't pay, and don't send more images. The next section explains why paying makes it worse, not better.
Don't delete anything. Screenshot their profile, username, profile URL, every message, and any payment details they gave (payment handles, wallets, phone numbers). The FBI's advice is blunt: "Don't delete anything on your device before law enforcement reviews it." UK police add: deactivate your account rather than deleting it, so the data can still be retrieved.
Block them on every platform, after the screenshots.
Report the account in the app (Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, the dating app). Use the option for blackmail, threats or sextortion if there is one.
Lock down your own accounts for now. Set them to private and hide your friends and followers lists so they can't harvest more contacts.
Tell one person you trust. A friend, a parent, a sibling, a teacher. You don't have to show them anything. A script that works: "Someone online is blackmailing me with photos. I'm not in trouble and I haven't done anything wrong, but I need help reporting it."
Report it and use the removal tools described below for your country.

If any of this has you thinking about hurting yourself, please reach out right now. In the US, call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which is free and open around the clock. In the UK, call Samaritans free on 116 123, any time. Elsewhere, call your national emergency number. This situation feels permanent. It isn't.

Should I pay a sextortion demand?

No. Paying doesn't make the images go away, and it usually brings a second demand, because you've just shown them you can pay.

The FBI's Charlotte field office: "Paying the criminals doesn't make the scheme stop. They'll continue to ask for more money." NCMEC, reviewing its 2025 reports: "Cooperating or paying rarely stops blackmail." In Thorn's study of NCMEC reports, 27% of victims who paid said the demands continued after the first payment.

So what usually happens if you don't pay? The threats get louder for a few hours or days, the "10 minutes" deadline resets several times, and then the account goes quiet, because the person running it has hundreds of other targets. Thorn's analysis gives a hard number: of 1,837 reports that named a platform where the images would supposedly be posted, 102 confirmed that distribution actually happened, about 5.6%. That figure comes from reports to a child-protection hotline and most reports didn't record the outcome, so treat it as a strong indication rather than a guarantee. The odds are nothing like what the blackmailer says, and if they do follow through, the removal tools below are built for exactly that.

If you already paid, you did what many people do under threat, and it doesn't change your options. Contact your bank, Cash App, PayPal or Venmo, the gift card company or your crypto exchange right away and tell them it was extortion; our guide on how to get money back after a scam walks through each payment type. Don't pay again.

Who was I really talking to, and could I have known?

Almost always, the account was fake: a stolen set of photos, a new or purchased account, and a script run by someone who does this all day. These profiles are built to pass the quick glance. Many adults and most teenagers would have believed them, and nothing about believing one makes this your fault.

For your report, note the handle, display name, any name they gave you, phone number, payment handle, and the platform where you first met. Those details are what lets police and platforms connect your case to others.

Two checks explain what you were dealing with, and they're worth running on anyone who approaches you online in future. First, the account itself: our guide to how to tell if an Instagram account is fake shows how to read the join date, country and follower pattern. Second, the person. If they gave you a name and a story, a Search A-Z dating match search on that name and country shows whether a real person with that job, city and history exists, and lets you add up to three of their photos to see where else those exact images appear online. In sextortion cases the result is usually either no matching person at all, or photos that belong to a real person elsewhere who has no idea they're being used. Either confirms you were targeted by a fake. Dating searches show only a city, the person is never told you searched, and none of this is about blame. It's about knowing.

How do I report sextortion in the US?

In the US, report to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov or by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324), file a complaint at ic3.gov, and if anyone involved is under 18, report to NCMEC's CyberTipline. Then use the free image-removal tools.

FBI: tips.fbi.gov, 1-800-CALL-FBI, or ic3.gov.
NCMEC CyberTipline at CyberTipline.org, or 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678), for anyone who was under 18. NCMEC also helps with removal requests and offers support at gethelp@ncmec.org.
Take It Down (takeitdown.ncmec.org) if you were under 18 in the images, even if you're an adult now. The tool creates a digital fingerprint (a hash) of the image on your own device and only the hash goes to NCMEC; the image is never uploaded. Participating platforms use the hash list to find and remove copies. It's free.
StopNCII.org (stopncii.org) if you were 18 or over in the images. Same idea: the hash is created on your device and your images never leave it. You can create a case as soon as someone threatens to share, before anything is posted, and participating platforms including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok check uploads against it.
Platform removal, with a deadline. The FTC says that under the Take It Down Act, platforms must remove intimate images within 48 hours of a request, free of charge. If a platform doesn't, report it at TakeItDown.ftc.gov.
FTC: report the scam at reportfraud.ftc.gov as well.

If images were taken from your own social media and altered with AI, report in exactly the same way; the FBI says AI-manipulated images are now part of these cases.

How do I report sextortion in the UK?

In the UK, call the police on 101 (999 if you're in immediate danger), use the Revenge Porn Helpline if you're 18 or over, and use Childline's Report Remove if you're under 18.

Police: 101, or 999 in an emergency. Report Fraud's sextortion guidance says to stop all contact, block on every platform, not to pay ("there is no guarantee that this will stop the threats"), and not to delete messages, images or bank details. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.
Revenge Porn Helpline (adults 18+ in the UK): 0345 6000 459 or help@revengepornhelpline.org.uk, open 10:00 to 16:00 Monday to Friday except bank holidays. It gives confidential advice, helps get content removed, and runs StopNCII.org.
Under 18: Childline on 0800 1111, free and anonymous. Report Remove, run by Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation, lets under-18s report sexual images of themselves and have the IWF work to remove them. You can also report to the National Crime Agency's CEOP Safety Centre.
Emails with a password in them: forward to report@phishing.gov.uk and delete.
Support: Samaritans on 116 123 (free, any time). The IWF's page for adults also lists CALM on 0800 58 58 58, open 5pm to midnight.

The National Crime Agency's 2024 alert noted that 91% of UK victims in the IWF's 2023 cases were male, that some cases went from first contact to blackmail in under an hour, and, in the NCA's words, "you are not to blame and help and support is available."

How do I report sextortion in the EU?

In the EU, report to your national police. Europol keeps a list of every member state's online reporting site, and the two hash tools work from anywhere: Take It Down for images taken when you were under 18, StopNCII.org for images taken as an adult.

Keep the same evidence (screenshots, handles, payment details), report the account in the app, and don't pay. If you're under 18, tell a trusted adult and use your country's child helpline; the Europol page points to national contacts. The 48-hour removal duty described above is a US law, but the StopNCII and Take It Down hash lists are used by Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and other participating platforms wherever you are.

How do I avoid "sextortion help" scams?

Be wary of any company that contacts you, or appears in a paid ad, offering to make sextortion stop for a fee. The FBI and the FTC both warn that these services charge thousands of dollars and can't deliver what they promise.

The FBI's 2023 alert describes companies charging victims $1,500 to $5,000 for cease-and-desist letters that aren't legally enforceable, while discouraging them from going to the police; in some cases the FBI suspects the "helper" is connected to the blackmailer. In October 2026 the FTC sued one such operator, alleging it falsely promised to stop threats and prevent images spreading while charging customers thousands. Those are allegations, but the FTC's advice stands either way: real help is free. Law enforcement, NCMEC, the Revenge Porn Helpline, StopNCII and Take It Down don't charge.

An unsolicited message or ad offering to "track down" the blackmailer or "guarantee" removal.
Fees required up front, before anything is done.
Pressure not to contact police, or claims of special government ties.
A long contract, or a second bill because the "perpetrator demanded more".

The bottom line

Sextortion is a crime committed against you, and the people doing it are counting on panic and silence. Don't pay, don't send more, don't delete, block and report, and use Take It Down or StopNCII to stop the images spreading. Tell one person you trust today. In most reported cases the threat is never carried out, and even when it is, there are free tools and real people ready to help you take it down.

Frequently asked questions

Will they actually leak my photos if I don't pay?

Usually not. In Thorn's analysis of NCMEC sextortion reports, only about 5.6% of reports that named a target platform confirmed the images were actually shared. The blackmailer's business depends on volume and fear, not on following through. If it does happen, Take It Down (under 18 in the image) and StopNCII.org (18+) help platforms find and remove copies, and the FTC says US platforms must remove intimate images within 48 hours of a request.

Should I pay sextortion to make it stop?

No. The FBI says paying doesn't make the scheme stop and the criminals keep asking for more, and NCMEC says cooperating or paying rarely stops blackmail. In Thorn's data, 27% of victims who paid reported continued demands. Stop replying, block, report, and if you already paid, contact your bank or payment app immediately.

I'm under 18. Am I in trouble for sending the photos?

No. You are the victim of a crime, and police and NCMEC treat you that way. Tell a trusted adult, don't delete the messages, and report it: in the US through NCMEC's CyberTipline or tips.fbi.gov, in the UK to police on 101 or Childline on 0800 1111. Use Take It Down (US and worldwide) or Report Remove (UK) to get the images taken down.

I got an email saying they have my password and a webcam video. Is it real?

No. It's a mass scam that uses passwords leaked in old data breaches to look convincing; there is no video. The FTC's advice is to stop, not pay, delete the message and report it. Change the password if you still use it anywhere and turn on two-factor authentication.

Should I delete the chat or my account?

No. Screenshot everything first: the profile, username, URL, messages and payment details, because police and platforms need it. Then block. If you want to step away from a platform, deactivate your account rather than deleting it, which is what UK police recommend, so the data can still be recovered for the investigation.

How do I report sextortion on Instagram or Snapchat?

Use the in-app report option on the profile or message and choose the category for blackmail, threats or sextortion, then block the account. Reporting in the app isn't enough on its own: also report to the FBI (tips.fbi.gov or ic3.gov) or NCMEC in the US, police on 101 in the UK, or your national police in the EU, and create a case on StopNCII.org or Take It Down so the images are blocked across platforms.

Can I get my money back after paying a sextortion demand?

Sometimes, if you act fast. Call your bank or card issuer, or contact Cash App, PayPal or Venmo, and say it was extortion; gift card companies can occasionally freeze unused balances; crypto is very hard to recover. Report to ic3.gov in the US or Report Fraud in the UK. Our guide to getting money back after a scam covers each payment type.

Sources

Figures are the latest published by each source when this guide was updated. Reported fraud losses are a floor: most fraud is never reported.

Sextortion: what to do in the first hour, and who to call in the US, UK and EU