FBI Field offices across the country have reported an increase in youth extortion

cases where sexually explicit content is used as blackmail.

Stephanie Sye reports on the concerning trend and preventive efforts to protect minors.

Social media has become fertile ground for scammers to target young people and in some cases the consequences have been deadly.

In a two-year period between October 2021 to March 2023,

the FBI received over 13,000 reports of online financial extortion of minors. It impacted 12,600 victims and led to at least 20 suicides.

FBI Special Agent Emily Steele joins us from the Phoenix suicides. can do to prevent it. Agent Steele, thank you so much for joining the news hour.

First of all, give me a sense of how prevalent this crime has become

and why the FBI is especially concerned about young people.

This crime has become significantly more prevalent,

especially with younger children's access to technology.

So whether it be receiving an iPad or a Chromebook from school that has internet connection or even just availability of getting on a parent's phone and using social media.

Kids are learning younger and younger how to navigate through the internet and online social media world.

And that's creating more victims for predators.

Okay, so this is happening I understand through social media.

How exactly are these people luring children in through these platforms?

How does it work?

You know, it can be described in a long or short process, but the short process is children are vulnerable and children are everywhere online and not using proper security techniques on their social media. So say for instance they have an

Instagram it's not set to private and anyone can follow them and see what they're doing on their day-to-day

activity. So if a child posts on their Instagram story, for instance, that they're in school and they're taking

pictures with their friends, well, then a predator instantly knows that this is a minor because they are in school.

From there it can be as easy as sending a direct message

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