Revenge porn and sextortion; how to deal with it?

Did you know that sending nudes can be a crime? Sharing someone else’s nudes or sending your own to someone, can be considered a cybercrime.

Sadly, there are many kinds of cybercrimes. Among them are revenge prorn, remote control, grooming and sextortion.

Revenge porn is when someone you dated or had sex with, uploads a sexual video where you appear. When the video is uploaded without your consent and as an act of revenge, is called revenge porn.

Another cybercrime is remote control, which is when someone pays to watch a crime being made. This can be murder, rape or torture. It is a terrible thing to do and a terrible thing to pay for. Also, it is also a cybercrime.

Yet another common cybercrime is called “Grooming”. “Grooming” is when someone approaches a minor, pretending to be a friend, develops and nurtures a relationship and later asks for naked pictures or sex videos. Be careful.

There is also sextortion. Sextortion is when someone threatens to publish naked photos of you or intimate photos. They usually ask for money in exchange of the pictures or videos.

Here are some tips to avoid revenge porn or other kinds of cybercrimes:

  • Google your name once in a while, this will help you make sure that no one has uploaded something you would not approve.
  • Never open a message from someone you don’t know. Especially if this person has an anonymous profile or doesn’t even have a profile picture. It could be extortion or a virus.
  • Do not take any naked pictures of yourself. If you really feel like taking one, at least do it in a way that your face does not appear.
  • At last, remember that most social networks have their own way to report content. On Facebook, for example, you can report a photo or a video as pornography or as offending to you or someone you know. On Instagram, you can also report images as inappropriate, by clicking on the three dots at the top of the image.

Here are some tools that will help you in a case of revenge porn or similar cybercrimes:

DMCA: This is an enterprise that can help you have content removed or erased from any page or from Google for a fee.

http://www.DMCA.com

Ealixir: This is another company that works with authorities and looks for content on social media and public websites that may affect you to have it erased.

https://www.ealixir.com/about-us

Bad Ass Army: For psychological and emotional support there is Bad Ass Army. They give legal and general advice on what to do or how to act in these specific cases at no cost.

Revenge Porn Helpline: There is also Revenge Porn Helpline. They offer emotional support through phone and through email for all those people that have been affected by revenge porn or another sexual cybercrime.

https://revengepornhelpline.org.uk/

IICyberSecurity: You can contact the experts from the International Institute of Cyber Security​.

https://www.iicybersecurity.com/index