TOKYO (TR) – The number of complaints about “sextortion,” whereby victims are coerced into sending sexually explicit content, is on the rise, according to a non-profit organization based in the capital.
Sextortion is a combination of the English words “sex” and “extortion.”
The Organization for Pornography and Sexual Exploitation Survivors (PAPS) offers assistance on issues involving sexual violence and other related topics. On July 17, it held a press conference in Tokyo to raise awareness the increase in sextortion cases.
According to PAPS, there were 1,066 sextortion consultations reported through July 16 this year. That figure is on the rise. For all of 2022, it stood at 131. For the next year, it jumped to 528. Last year, it was 1,864.
Many victims connect with their perpetrators through smartphone apps for language exchange, dating or messaging. Over time, the perpetrators demand sexually explicit conversations, photos and videos. If the victims send these, they face threats regarding the spreading of the images on social media. They are then asked for money for the removal of the content.
Even after paying, the content could remain undeleted. Then, the demands will escalate.
“We’ve received reports from a wide range of people, from elementary school students to men in their 40s and 50s,” says Eri Uchida, the director of PAPS. “One person kept paying over 1 million yen.”
In one case, a teenage boy met a woman from overseas on a social networking app for learning English. As their conversations proceeded, the woman then told him, “Show your body.” He did so after she first removed her clothes.
She then informed the victim that she had recorded him and threatened to “spread the footage” on Instagram unless he sent cash or a gift card.
PAPS is urging people not to pay any money and to immediately contact the police or related organizations.
