What Is Sextortion — And What to Do If It Happens to Your Child

Sextortion is a form of blackmail where someone obtains or claims to have explicit images or videos of a person and threatens to share them unless the victim pays money or sends more content. It is one of the fastest-growing online threats targeting teens, and it disproportionately affects boys ages 14-17. The FBI reported a dramatic increase in sextortion cases targeting minors between 2022 and 2025. The pattern is almost always the same: a stranger poses as a peer (often an attractive teen) on gaming platforms, Instagram, or Snapchat, quickly establishes trust, asks for an explicit image, then immediately reveals their true intent and threatens to share the image with the victim's friends, family, and school unless money or more images are sent. The psychological impact is severe. Multiple teens have died by suicide after being targeted. The most important thing parents can do is talk about this before it happens — and respond without anger or blame if it does.