Sextortion Is Killing Kids: Inside the Scam Targeting Teens
Intelligence analyst Paul Raffile explains the alarming rise of the financial scam targeting teen boys.
Episode 33: Paul Raffile explains the fastest-growing and most lethal online scam targeting kids. He breaks down how financially motivated sextortion works, who’s behind it, why cases are exploding, and what parents, platforms, and law enforcement must do now to stop it. This is a conversation every parent and trusted adult of teens needs to hear.
“They can groom, blackmail, and extort money from a teen, sometimes in the course of six hours. I’ve seen cases that have occurred in 27 minutes.” — Paul Raffile
Sextortion, a form of online blackmail, has devastating consequences for victims, particularly young men. Erin and Paul discuss the mechanics of how these scams operate, the psychological impact on victims, and the role of organized criminal networks in perpetuating this crime. The conversation emphasizes the importance of awareness, preventive measures, and societal and legal changes to combat the threat.
In 2021, there were only 139 reported cases of this crime targeting U.S. teens. There will be more than 50,000 reported cases in 2025.
Technology plays a dual role, both facilitating and combating sextortion.
How Do These Scams Work?
Teen boys and college-age men are the main demographics we’re seeing the criminals target. Teens are particularly targeted due to their online activity and vulnerability as young people. The criminals are catfishing. They impersonate pretty young women who appear to be their targets’ age and befriending them on social media and dating apps.
The interactions quickly turn flirtatious. The criminals themselves will usually send a nude image first, then ask the target to reciprocate. And as soon as the victim sends their own image, the blackmail begins.
The criminals then turn to their script that basically says, “I have your nudes and everything needed to ruin your life. I have your entire friend list, your followers, and your family. I’m going to ruin your life unless you pay me $500 right now.”
They’ll use threats, telling the victim they’ll get them kicked off their sports team, expelled from school, or have their scholarship revoked. In extreme circumstances, the criminals will begin releasing the photos.
“A 13-year-old in Pennsylvania downloaded Instagram on a Sunday. He was extorted on Monday. He died by suicide on Tuesday.” — Paul Raffile
Who Is Behind the Crimes?
Even if the victim blocks the perpetrators, they’ll come back from a different account or phone number and continue the harassment.
The initial connection to West African cybercriminals came once some victims blocked the criminals on social media, they received text messages from phone numbers with 234, the country code for Nigeria.
We looked at Google search trends in that region. The phrase “how to blackmail someone with pictures” was trending at 850% in Nigeria.
We examined the cybercrime syndicate landscape in West Africa. And one of the groups kept coming up is called Yahoo Boys. They get their name from the free Yahoo email addresses that they used 20 years ago for these Nigerian Prince email scams.
We found Facebook groups with 20,000 members sharing the scripted messages, the catfish images to use, and how to target high schools and universities. It was a trade show on how to exploit kids and blackmail them for money in public Facebook groups.
We’ve now seen several extraditions from West Africa.
What Can Parents and Trusted Adults Do?
The most important prevention is proactive. Start a conversation. with them. Tell them what to avoid. Don’t message people you don’t know. Don’t accept these friend requests. Don’t move conversations to encrypted platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, or Snapchat. Never send a nude photo.
Part two needs to address what happens if they make a mistake and something happens. Tell them you’ll protect them. Create that safe space. The criminals are telling them their parents will be ashamed of them. They want to drive a wedge between the victim and the adults. Preempt that.
What Can We Do to Stop It?
There are things financial and social media platforms can do to help address and prevent these crimes. They have technology they can use to recognize red flags, detect the scripts, and identify catfish images that are used repeatedly.
Our legal frameworks need to adapt to address the rise of scams including sextortion.
Listen to the full episode to learn:
How the rise of peer-to-peer payment platforms like CashApp, Zelle, and Venmo aligns with the rise of teen sextortion.
The psychological impact of the intense amount of fear, pressure, and tactics the scammers use to manipulate victims.
Erin’s real-world advice for having difficult conversations about sextortion with teens.
Scammers release images less 10% of the time. Their goal is to get $50 right away. If they don’t get it, they move on to somebody else. Paying increases the victim’s risk.
What teens can do if they’ve been targeted: Where to report. How to change their online profiles. Who to contact if non-consensual images are released.
Why this type of scam is scaling so quickly — and why male teens are targeted more than female teens.
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Who Is Paul Raffile?
Paul Raffile is an intelligence analyst specializing in global cybercrime and transnational organized crime. He has led digital investigations across government and corporate sectors, uncovering emerging threats at the intersection of cybersecurity and national security.
Bridging frontline intelligence work and strategic risk management, Paul leads efforts to safeguard both digital and physical environments from complex, evolving threats. His recent research centers on global financial sextortion syndicates that target youth across digital platforms. His findings have directly contributed to safety updates on leading social media platforms, enhancing online protections for vulnerable users worldwide.
Paul has trained professionals in intelligence analysis, threat disruption, and digital investigations, helping to strengthen institutional capacity across sectors.
Episode Chapters
0:00 — Introduction to Sextortion and Its Impact
07:36 — Understanding the Mechanics of Sextortion
09:54 — Identifying the Perpetrators: The Yahoo Boys
12:37 — Victim Demographics and Experiences
14:47 — Consequences of Sextortion: A Lethal Reality
17:05 — Advice for Victims: Navigating the Crisis
19:40 — The Role of Social Media and Financial Platforms
22:08 — Legislative and Community Response
24:47 — Preventive Measures and Raising Awareness
27:22 — The Future of Sextortion: Trends and Predictions
29:21 — The Path Forward
Useful Links
Stolen, Episode 22: The Financial Sextortion of Teens
WIRED: 493 Child Sextortion Cases Linked to Known Scam Compounds
BBC: Mass arrests for sextortion and romance scams across Africa
Sponsors of Stolen
BioCatch prevents financial crime by recognizing patterns in human behavior, continuously collecting 3,000 anonymized data points – keystroke and mouse activity, touch screen behavior, physical device attributes, and more – as people interact with their digital banking platforms. With these inputs, BioCatch's models reveal patterns that distinguish the criminal from the legitimate.
Scamnetic is a leader in AI-powered scam detection and prevention, protecting individuals, businesses, and financial institutions from digital scams. With solutions like KnowScam and IDeveryone, Scamnetic delivers real-time scam insights, identity verification, and intervention. Restoring trust, reducing losses, and empowering organizations to safeguard customers in an increasingly complex digital world.
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