We live in a time where, believe it or not, Our lives are completely intertwined with the Internet and our privacy becomes a bargaining chip that scammers play with.. One of the most perhaps most disturbing tactics is blackmail through the alleged possession of compromised videos of you.
Cybercriminals claim to have explicit material and threaten to spread it if you don’t comply with what they ask. He modus operandi This threat usually begins with an email that arrives in your inbox.
This claims to have a video that “shows” the victim consuming pornographic content. The strategy is based on sowing fear and shame, taking advantage of people’s vulnerability to the possibility that everyone knows what they are consuming.
This type of blackmail is not a sudden novelty; Its roots date back to at least 2017, as explained by Kaspersky, and over the years, cybercriminals have evolved their methods.finding more sophisticated ways to deceive victims.
“There are all kinds of variants, but the message always boils down to the claim that the sender infected your computer, hacking your account, or placing malware on a porn site you visited,” they explain.
“Apparently, they have collected contacts from your email, social networks, instant messaging services and telephone directory. It appears that cybercriminals have full access to your device and have hijacked your webcam to record you,” adds Kaspersky.
Kaspersky
Those behind this type of blackmail often operate in the dark, exploiting vulnerabilities in account security or even obtaining compromising information through massive data breaches.
Once they believe they have identified a potential victim, They send intimidating messages that contain specific details about the person to validate their threats.
“As for how they ‘know’ you’ve been watching adult content, it’s a blind bet. The email you received was sent to thousands, perhaps millions of people, with the recipient’s password (and other personal data) that are automatically filled into the message from the database. Even if only a few dozen recipients of the online scam pay, it will be more than enough for the scammer,” they comment.
In many cases, attackers can use social engineering techniques to obtain additional personal information, increasing the perceived truthfulness of their claims.
The main tactic is to sow fear and uncertainty, leading the victim to a state of anguish and, ultimately, persuading her to pay a ransom—even in Bitcoins—to prevent the alleged dissemination of the compromising material.
“Some scammers only give you a few days and claim that they know the exact moment you opened the email, which supposedly has a tracking pixel that allows them to monitor the status of the message. In some cases, as part of their effort to convince you of the existence of a compromising video, they ask you to respond to the message and, after that, the scammers say that they will send the video to a selection of your contacts,” they comment.
This is how you can protect yourself and avoid becoming another victim
how to put an end to this blackmail? In the end everything requires a little on your part, not being scared and a thorough understanding of the safety measures you should take. Here are some simple guidelines to protect yourself:
- Strong passwords as a starting point: Use strong passwords and regularly change your online credentials. Avoid using the same password on multiple accounts and, of course, don’t panic if you receive an email of this type. “Write down the password they sent you in the ransom email and change it immediately on all the sites you use it on,” Karspersky explains.
- Two-factor authentication (2FA): Enable two-factor authentication whenever possible. This extra layer of security will make it difficult for unauthorized access to your accounts.
- Monitor your privacy and be careful where you click: Be aware of the information you share online and adjust the privacy settings in your accounts to limit the visibility of your personal data.
- Be wary of strangers: Avoid interacting with strangers and be cautious when clicking on links or opening attachments from unverified sources. Do not reply to these emails and block them immediately.
With all this, stay alert, strengthen your security measures and, above all, remember that the shame associated with bullying is a tool that cybercriminals use for their benefit and that usually ends up working in many cases.
