Parents need to be aware of sextortionists targeting teens

C. Davis photo

Cybertip.ca

The Canadian Centre for Child Protection is warning parents about an increasing and serious trend involving Canadian youth being extorted for money. In the last few weeks, Cybertip.ca, Canada’s national tipline for reporting the online sexual exploitation of children, has seen a concerning rise in teenagers reporting issues surrounding video communication with adults posing as teenagers. On platforms that allow users to communicate by video, offenders are secretly recording teenagers exposing themselves and then threatening to share the sexual content if they don’t pay money (often hundreds of dollars) to the individual.


While many teens understand the dangers associated with recording and sharing sexual images and videos, they may not be as aware of the risks associated with live video feeds. With relative ease over live streaming, anyone can capture a still image or video of a person sexually exposing themselves – all without the other person’s knowledge.

Parents need to have regular, open dialogue with their teen around this topic encouraging the teen to seek parental support in situations like this. It is also important to talk to teens about never complying with threats online, since in most cases this will only make matters worse. We strongly encourage parents to take the time and learn more about ways to increase your teen’s safety online by visiting www.needhelpnow.ca and the Internet Safety section of the Cybertip.ca website.

Related link:
PDF of how to talk to youth about online extortion (and other resources)