Gardai have issued a warning over the latest scam targeting teenage boys and girls in Ireland.
Fraudsters are targeting teens and convincing them into sending sexually explicit images before using them as blackmail to extort money out of victims.
Gardaí working on the case say a number of teenage boys have reported the scam recently, but that teenage girls are also being targeted.
Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast, Garda Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant, Dean Kerins, explained what they know about the scam so far.
Sergeant Kerins said: “One of the young boys in particular, he got a friend request from a complete stranger that started off innocently but very quickly proceeded to a point where the lady in question started sending inappropriate sexual images of herself to the young men and then looked for them in return.
“It happened very, very quickly. In the space of an hour, all this happened.
“Then, all of a sudden, the digital blackmail starts almost straight away then, where the third party starts looking for money from the young boys.”
He said gardai are trying to raise awareness so teenagers know that the images they’re being sent are not real and that the whole thing is a “complete and utter scam”.
He added: “The people who are doing this are living in a different part of the world.
“The images are not real and we need to get that across to the young people.
“When they get a friend request from a stranger who then progresses very quickly to sending inappropriate or sexual images, they should be thinking this is a scam straight away.
“Don’t fall into this trap.”
Sergeant Kerins said this method of scamming young people has been around for years and many have fallen victim.
As for what to do if something like this happens to you, Kerins said: ”We would certainly ask people not to share their information, don’t pay any of the money and certainly look for help,” he said.
“You are not alone. Make sure to preserve the evidence. Don’t delete anything.
“It is really important to stop the communication with these people, block the number and report it to ourselves and we will be there to help them out.”
