Oviedo police see increase in ‘sextortion’ scam targeting Instagram users

OVIEDO, Fla. – The Oviedo Police Department has issued a caution to citizens in regards to the increase in pretend Instagram accounts which can be blackmailing users via ‘sextortion’. The regulation enforcement company made a social media post on Saturday pronouncing that there’s a upward thrust in the choice of perpetrators who’re targeting unsuspecting users. As a end result, the police are elevating consciousness about those pretend profiles, which entice sufferers into sharing compromising pictures, after which use those photographs to extort cash from them.

The post additionally highlighted that those Instagram impostors regularly use sexy profile photos and interact in conversations with users to realize their agree with. Once agree with is established, the scammers will request or proportion specific content material. Later, they threaten to show those photographs to the sufferers’ family and friends until they obtain cost. This damaging form of on-line harassment, sometimes called “sextortion,” will have devastating results on those that are centered and suffering from it.

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  Oviedo police provides the next steps to lend a hand take precautions in opposition to what it known as malicious actions:

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  Be wary about accepting apply requests or attractive with strangers on social media.

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  Keep your profile’s privateness settings limited to family and friends.

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  Never proportion compromising pictures or private information with folks you have no idea smartly.

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  If you observed an account is faux, document it to Instagram for investigation.

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  Remember that even reputedly faithful accounts may also be compromised or faked.

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According to the post, sufferers of this scam are inspired to document the incident to their native regulation enforcement and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). They will have to additionally block and document the offending account on Instagram.

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