Online safety – be vigilant

Police are urging parents, guardians and children to be aware and vigilant of online safety over the school holiday period following a marked increase in the reporting of sexual extortion, or ‘sextortion’ – where victims are blackmailed with the threat of their intimate images being shared online unless the victim meets the perpetrator’s demands.

A spokesperson for Eyewatch – Moorabool PSA said police are encouraging parents to have age-appropriate conversations with their child around personal safety online and what to do if they find themselves in a situation that makes them feel uncomfortable.

“Most commonly, offenders engage victims through chat based social media platforms, often purporting to be a young person of a similar age to those they are targeting.

“Offenders establish a rapport with their victims, often flattering them or pretending they’re in some kind of relationship, before sending what they suggest are intimate images of themselves. They’ll then coerce their victims into sending sexualised personal images back,” the spokesperson said on social media.

“Once they’ve received the images, the offender threatens to on-share the content with friends and family of the victim, making demands for money, gift cards or cryptocurrency. Even if the demands are met, the offenders will often still distribute the images.”

A key piece of advice parents or guardians can give their children is not to accept friend requests from people they do not know.

If you are subject to any type of concerning behaviour like this online, we would urge you to contact police and discuss the circumstances with us.
Anyone who contacts police will be supported and treated with respect, courtesy and dignity.

“We believe that these matters are underreported and that can be for a range of reasons, including fear or embarrassment, and sometimes feeling unsure if an offence has occurred or if they will be believed.”

Victoria Police is committed to investigating these matters and holding offenders to account.

Anyone with knowledge of these incidents and those responsible is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report at www.crimestoppers.com.au