Sextortion & blackmailing
Definition & description
Sextortion is an act of threatening to disseminate sexually explicit or intimate information often in the form of images and/or videos. It is done to force victims to act according to the person who is doing the sextortion. This can be done to extort information, sexual favours or money from the victim. While sextortion falls under the broader umbrella term of extortion, it can be considered different in the sense of exploiting the existing societal stigmatisation around our sexuality. This ends up affecting women, girls and LGBTQ persons disproportionately.
It is important to note that intersectional vulnerabilities greatly affect the barriers and access to justice/support/remedy for victims in the event of sextortion. For instance, a series of WhatsApp messages, even in the absence of any nude photo, may be compromising to the victim who comes from a conservative family who is yet to accept their gender identity as a trans woman.
Sextortion can also happen in the context of a "dating scam". The perpetrator usually would aim to build the victim’s trust before convincing them to send explicit photos of themselves or to join a video call and trick them into performing sexual acts or posing in compromising positions which later will be weaponised against them. The perpetrators target the human desire for companionship and manipulate victims’ emotional needs for their selfish gains. In May 2021, Petaling Jaya OCPD shared that there was a total of 21 sextortion cases that were reported to the police. The OCPD said that many of the cases were a result of a syndicate, and some of the perpetrators are known to the victims. In July, Selangor recorded 220 cases of sextortion in the first half of the year. Later in September, more than 300 sextortion cases were reported.
What do I do: Incident response?
In some case, the blackmailer may go away once you cut out all contact, while some will aim for real damage. Either way, it is not your fault. The followings are some steps that others have found useful in similar situation.
Reporting it to police. Extortion is an offence under the penal code in Malaysia. However, many victims have shared stories of refusal to receive complaint or victim blaming from police officer. Police are more likely to dismiss case where the act of extortion are non-financial i.e. to get back together in a relationship. It is understandable that you do not feel safe coming forward to the authorities. If you do decide to make a report, we hope the information on this page will help you.
NOTE: Reporting may be seen as a simple step to most, however, for victims it may be a difficult task to do, and it is completely okay. The most important thing is to avoid the retraumatization of victims. If you feel this is a heavy process to do, we recommend reaching out to someone you trust to help you.
Block. Stop all communication with the blackmailer immediately. Sometimes confronting them may worsen the situation. Block them from on your email, messaging apps and social media. Remember to change your privacy setting so that they do not have access to your friend or follower list.
Strengthen your locks. You may want to consider changing all your passwords to prevent others from intruding and hacking your information. Opt for long, strong and unique passwords and use two-factor authentication where it is possible.
Learn more about how you can create and maintain strong password here:
Doxing yourself. To ensure your private information is not sprawled out on the internet, sometimes it helps to try and dox yourself. You know yourself best!
Monitor. Find a way to monitor the incidents so you can assess your risk and decide the next move. If it is too much, ask a friend to monitor your accounts and the relevant platforms.
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