Perpetrators obtain intimate images or data through deception, hacking, or previous consensual sharing, then threaten exposure unless victims comply with demands for money, sexual content, or other actions. This abuse type therefore has overlap with intimate image abuse and doxxing.
Relationship-based sextortion often involves current or former partners leveraging previously shared intimate content.
The ways in which sexual extortion manifests within the context of human trafficking can be broken down into these areas:
Financial sextortion typically involves strangers using fake profiles (sometimes involving online impersonation) to manipulate victims into sharing images, then demanding payment.
Perpetrators frequently use formulaic scripts and operate across multiple platforms, moving victims from public spaces to private messaging.
Thorn's 2017 sextortion research found that "threats overwhelmingly involved demands for explicit imagery," with "86% of victims threatened by online offenders and 62% from offline offenders" receiving such demands (Thorn, 2017). When the primary motivation is sexual rather than financial, perpetrators often exhibit different behavioral patterns, including longer grooming periods and more persistent contact attempts.
The Canadian Centre for Child Protection's analysis of financial sextortion found that perpetrators in "Com" networks may also be motivated by status, misogyny, or "an obsession with extreme or violent material" (Canadian Centre for Child Protection, 2022).
Financial sextortion shows geographic concentration, with 47% of reports linked to Nigeria or Côte d'Ivoire, suggesting organized criminal networks (Thorn, 2024).
What kind of material can be used for sexual extortion and reporting patterns vary significantly across cultures due to different levels of shame, family honor concepts, and trust in authorities.
Medium - Requires social engineering skills, ability to create convincing fake profiles, and knowledge of platform vulnerabilities, but doesn't require advanced technical expertise.
AI-generated deepfakes (i.e. /deceptive synthetic media/) lower barriers to creating convincing intimate imagery without victim participation.
AI pattern recognition could help platforms identify sextortion attempts through behavioral analysis and communication patterns typical of these schemes.