Police in Northern Ireland have launched a campaign to raise awareness of blackmail scammers who trick victims into sharing intimate images of themselves online.
The blackmailers then threaten to send the images or recordings to family, friends or work colleagues unless a ransom is paid.
The PSNI said it chose Valentine's Day to launch the campaign to urge the public "to get wise to the amorous advances of online fraudsters."
Police say they are dealing with increasing reports of the practice, referred to as 'sextortion', which starts with criminals using a false identity to befriend victims online.
"The exchange may start with flirting and flattery, but ends with the victim coaxed into sending intimate images or performing sexual acts online, unwittingly in front of a camera," explains Detective Chief Inspector David McBurney.
"Behind the fake and attractive persona, there's a criminal. These people are often part of sophisticated and organised crime groups, mostly based overseas. They extort their victims by threatening to share those images or recordings unless demands for money are met."
The PSNI says it dealt with an average of between 35 and 40 reports of sextortion during the months January to July last year. The vast majority of the victims, 94%, were men, with the most targeted group those aged 18 to 29.
In 2017, a man was sentenced to four years in prison in Romania for blackmailing a Co Tyrone schoolboy, who took his own life in 2015 just hours after images he was tricked into sharing online were sent to his friends when he did not pay a ransom.
The perpetrator, Iulian Enache, was tracked down through a combination of the PSNI's specialist cyber crime unit, Europol, the National Crime Agency and Romania's Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism.
Detective Inspector McBurney urged anyone targeted in a similar scam not to panic, not to respond to demands and not to enter any further communication.
"If you can, confide in a trusted friend or family member; and please contact officers immediately on 101," he added.
The PSNI issued the following online safety advice:
Don't get lured or pushed into compromising situations. Trust your gut, and end uncomfortable situations immediately.
Always remember that what goes online may well stay online.
Be wary about whom you invite or accept invitations from on social networking sites. Do not accept friendship requests from complete strangers.
Update the privacy settings on your social networking accounts so only people you know can view your account. Do not include any sensitive or private information in profiles.
