Federal and state police across the country warned about a rise in the number of email "sextortion" scams this month.
The Maryland State Police said in a statement on Thursday that reports of one sextortion scam targeting Gmail users surged in August and September.
In these scams, someone tells a victim they have access to embarrassing search history or compromising photos.
This means the scammers may have access to your email and even some of your current or former passwords, but they do not have access to your computer or search history.
The Maryland State Police say to be cautious of any "unsolicited" emails you receive to your Gmail account to avoid being the victim of a scam.
Persons:
—, bitcoin, They're, they've
Organizations:
Service, Maryland State Police, Business, FTC, Google
Locations:
Federal, Maryland