Sextortion: what to do if you’re targeted

Farrer & Co’s market-leading Reputation Management team launched The Price of Fame series to identify current reputational threats and talk to experts in a range of fields about strategies for handling them.

“Sextortion” is a term now being used to describe a form of blackmail where the perpetrator threatens to publish intimate photos or video of the victim online unless a demand for money is met.

Merging the words “sex” and “extortion”, it amounts to a serious criminal offence which, according to the Internet Watch Foundation, has risen sharply in recent years, fuelled by the availability of AI-generated images and deepfakes.

Anyone can be targeted, not just those who have shared intimate images, because the perpetrator may be lying when they claim to have obtained compromising material.

The experts are clear that: "Anyone could be a victim … It doesn't matter on your gender, your age, your ethnicity ... Of course, some people are more attractive as victims … their wealth, their status, whether they're high profile, whether they've got something to lose.”

Whatever form it takes, and whether you are high-profile or not, this is a deeply distressing situation which requires careful handling.

In this episode of The Price of Fame, we spoke to two experts from Theseus Fixated Risk Management about the dos and don’ts of handling threats of this nature:

• Andrew Wolfe Murray, a former Metropolitan Police officer, with extensive experience of protecting public figures in the UK, and
• Dr Frank Farnham, a Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist with expertise in assessing risk and managing and treating mentally disordered offenders.
  
  

The Price of Fame – Sextortion: what if you're next?

Click on the image below to watch our latest video in our Price of Fame series:

Key guidance

Take a step back

Anyone facing this situation will be tempted to react straight away by engaging with the perpetrator, for example by sending a response to a blackmail email or text.

However, it is important to step back and pause before reacting because in fact, the best approach can often be not to respond at all.

Instead consider sitting down with a trusted third party to analyse the situation objectively.

However vulnerable you feel, you should avoid the temptation to pay up or offer money, as this is likely to result in higher demands.

“There are lots of options… Paying straight away is never going to be the right one. That gives off so many bad signals”, says Andrew Wolfe Murray.

Assess the identity and psychology of the perpetrator

Do you know who is trying to extort you?

The perpetrator could be anyone from an embittered ex-partner who does have real images of you to a criminal pretending to have this kind of information when in fact they do not.

In the latter scenario you may have been targeted by a criminal gang sending phishing emails to large numbers of people at random, falsely claiming to have compromising material in the hope some will believe it and pay up.

As Andrew Wolfe Murray suggests, “Don’t put your head above the parapet and be the one who responds”.

If, however, the perpetrator is known to you, bear in mind they may have a range of motivations other than money.

They may be “fixated”, ie obsessed with you and desperate for you to interact with them, in which case it is usually best not to engage.

According to Dr Frank Farnham: “Money may not be the main motivator. What’s really motivating them is continued contact. By paying them it’s a strong reinforcer that you’re going to continue to be in a relationship with them”.

The media will not usually publish unlawfully obtained private material

Bear in mind that the fear and emotional distress provoked by the situation can often be completely disproportionate to the actual risk.

For example, a threat to send compromising images to the press, once analysed, is much less worrying than it sounds, because the press would be highly unlikely to publish unlawful intimate images which are a breach of your privacy.

According to Dr Farnham, “Individuals may threaten to send material to national newspapers. National newspapers are unlikely to publish as it is a release of private material but also if you do engage lawyers, they may be in a position to remind those national newspapers of their obligations.”

If the behaviour persists, seek expert help and be prepared

If the threats continue or escalate, do not try to deal with them alone or directly as this would be hugely stressful and you may be tempted to respond emotionally, which could inflame the situation.

Andrew Wolfe Murray says: “Whether it’s using lawyers or a consultancy, get yourself an overview and make sure you are not the one responding in an emotional way.”

Prepare for the worst-case scenario by having a response-plan in place in case the threat is carried out.

It can be reassuring to know that social media platforms will usually take down unlawful content once formally notified of it and asked to remove it by lawyers. This is why it is worth getting legal representation in place as a contingency, even if no action ultimately proves necessary and the threat goes away.

 “Having lawyers is not just about treating the risk and the threat … Think about the contingency. Make sure everything is in place should that information be leaked anyway” says Andrew Wolfe Murray.

This publication is a general summary of the law. It should not replace legal advice tailored to your specific circumstances.

© Farrer & Co LLP, April 2024