NSW Police have charged two men in Nigeria after an alleged sextortion scam of over $500 led an Australian schoolboy to take his own life.
According to a police probe conducted last year, the child was interacting with an "unknown person online," who threatened to share his private images with his family and friends if he did not pay $500.
2 Nigerian Men Charged With Sextortion Offenses
Local NSW Police officers initially examined the matter before it was referred to the Australian Federal Police-led Australian Center to Counter Child Exploitation and the Cybercrime Squad of State Crime Command.
Sexual extortion, or sextortion, is a form of cyber blackmail that involves tricking or pressuring someone into submitting graphic photos of oneself. They are then warned that these photographs will be shared if they do not comply with demands.
Last month, detectives were informed that "two young males" from Nigeria had been taken into custody and charged with sextortion.
According to NSW Police, the two males would be "dealt with locally" in Africa, where authorities can prosecute for Australian-based offenses.
Commander of State Crime Command's Cybercrime Squad Detective Superintendent, Matthew Craft, urged youth to report these crimes. He said that the number of sextortion cases has surged by around 400% in the last 18 months.
He added that they want young people to continue to report these cases and never to be embarrassed to talk to the police.
AFP Commander Helen Schneider said that sextortion is a very real crime that they can take serious action against. She continued that the arrests showed what could be achieved when law enforcement worked together to fight a global problem.
Furthermore, Schneider noted the sextortion of children is a borderless crime, as these arrests show. She said the partnerships between law enforcement in Australia and worldwide are vital as they work together to protect children online.
Cybercrime Expert Explains Risks of Growing Online Culture
Lesley Land is a senior lecturer at the University of New South Wales, specializing in fraud and cybercrime.
According to her statement to the ABC, extortion efforts such as this have been around for a while and can be carried out by anyone worldwide. This has changed with the rise of technology and an increasingly online lifestyle, making sextortion more common.
Dr. Land said that the latest increase may result from people's ignorance that if they expose themselves online, people can easily take a shot at them and blackmail them.
Another explanation might be a rise in loneliness paired with longer-term scams.
Dr. Land said that the perpetrators are willing to spend lots of time talking to the person and making them believe they are being loved.
However, Dr. Land stated that more victims sharing their stories may cause this rise. She continued that even if this is good, more precautions must be taken.
"I think it's good in the sense that [victims] have reported it, and it's reflected in the statistics, but we really should educate them not even to depart with [any income], or even not reveal themselves online."
