Cape Town - An explosion in incidents of minor boys around the world being coerced into sending explicit images online and extorted for money has got the attention of international law enforcement agencies.
The FBI, along with partners in Canada, the UK and Australia, have issued a joint warning about a “Global Financial Sextortion Crisis”.
The global warning comes a week after a statement by SAPS sounded the alarm about young people falling victim to so-called “sextortion” schemes which the police warned could start on any social media network, app, site or game.
In December the US Department of Justice reported that more than 3000 minors globally, primarily boys, had been targeted by financial sextortion in 2022, a sharp increase over previous years. More than a dozen victims had died by suicide.
In a statement, FBI director Christopher Wray said: “Financial sextortion has a far wider impact than just our country and our kids, it is a global crisis that demands everyone’s attention.”
Reacting to the report, Education MEC David Maynier said the warning of a sextortion crisis was concerning.
“While we are aware of social media bullying, we have not been informed of a sextortion case involving one of our learners. Regardless, it is important that we constantly educate our children on social media risks and behaviours so that they become positive cybercitizens.”
Maynier said the Maynier said the Western Cape Education Department, which has a cyber-wellness programme, had taken the proactive step of introducing an online safety curriculum for pupils in Grades 8 to 12, as part of their life orientation lessons.
Maynier said public schools must draw up and publish a policy on the use of social media such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp and Twitter, and encourage pupils and staff to act responsibly and be aware of the consequences associated with the use of social media.
“Learners must be made aware of the potential negative effects of internet use. We encourage any learner who is approached by predators like the ones highlighted by the FBI, or experience any other form of abuse or threat to safety, to contact our Safe Schools Hotline, 0800 45 46 47, toll-free, to report this and receive support.”
ANC provincial education spokesperson Khalid Sayed said the fact that the sextortion of young people was global was a matter of great concern.
“We urge parents and teachers to make reasonable efforts to protect children. Anyone can fall victim to this and this is why we must be cautious and always protect the learners.”
Western Cape Children’s Commissioner Christina Nomdo said: “Sexual offences against children is a very serious indictment of the state of our global society.
“We need to be able to protect children from predators inside and outside their homes. We also need to educate children about sexual abuse and how to keep themselves safe online. They need to understand the values and the dangers of engaging online.”
Nomdo said parents and primary caregivers should be the ones guiding children how to protect themselves online and that they should be the trusted adult their children turn to when they feel they are in danger from online predators.
On Monday, World Safer Internet Day, Cape Town online safety and social media organisation MySociaLife launched a 22-minute social media current affairs video show to equip pupils with online safety knowledge.
MySociaLife founder Dean McCoubrey said the video show, OneLife, focuses on “hyper-relevant” issues and is aimed at pupils aged 12 to 18 years, showcasing video episodes made up of six three-minute segments.
IT security solutions company ESET’s chief executive Carey van Vlaanderen said: “Catfishing, sextortion, phishing and other romance scams are big business for fraudsters.”
In 2021, eight suspects were arrested in Cape Town in connection with an online dating scam and stealing more than R100 million from victims in various countries.
Meanwhile, the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) has said that some terror groups have been targeting South Africans to finance their criminal acts through romance scams.
Sabric also reported that online dating scams are used by fraudsters to launder the illicit proceeds of crime.