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WASHINGTON (AP) — Last year, a teenager in a small Michigan town killed himself after an online chat turned to demands that he pay money to keep intimate photos secret. He was one of dozens of people targeted online by two men extradited from Nigeria to face charges, FBI director Christopher Wray said Saturday. The arrests came after the FBI joined with police in Michigan to investigate the death of 17-year-old Jordan DeMay, one thousands of American teenagers targeted in a sharp rise in online “sextortion” cases in recent years. He was preparing to go a trip to Florida with his father the night before his death, she said. HIs family has since spoken out about his death, urging other parents to talk with their kids about “sextortion” schemes.

Persons: Christopher Wray, Jordan DeMay, “, ” Wray, Wray, DeMay, Samuel Ogoshi, Samson Ogoshi, Samuel Ogoshi's, Samson Ogoshi's, Jennifer Buta Organizations: WASHINGTON, —, FBI, Associated Press, International Association of Chiefs, Police, U.S Locations: Michigan, Nigeria, U.S, Jordan, Upper, Marquette County, Lagos, Ivory Coast, Florida

☆ A man was jailed for using AI to create hundreds of sexual images of children
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A man in South Korea was jailed for creating sexually explicit images of children. A Spanish town has been rocked after an AI app was used to create fake naked photos of girls. AdvertisementAdvertisementA South Korean man was jailed for using AI prompts to create sexually explicit images of children, The Korea Herald reported, citing local outlets. The man is alleged to have used an image-generating AI program to create about 360 sexual images, the prosecutor's office told CNN. The deepfake images were reportedly made using made using Clothoff, an AI-powered app that allows users to "undress girl for free."

Persons: — Organizations: Korea Herald, Service, CNN, FBI Locations: South Korea, Spain, Almendralejo, Extremadura

☆ Snapchat is working to make its app even safer for teen users
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Snapchat says it’s working to make its app even safer for teen users. The company also launched a series of YouTube videos for parents about the features and an updated website laying out its teen safety and parental control policies. And since then, Snapchat — like other platforms — has rolled out a variety of new teen safety and parental supervision tools. The app’s other existing teen safety measures include prohibiting young users from having public profiles and having teens’ Snap Map location-sharing tool turned off by default. Snapchat will also impose a new strike system for accounts promoting content inappropriate for teens in its Stories and Spotlight sections, where users can share content publicly on the app.

Persons: New York CNN — Snapchat, Snap, Snapchat Organizations: New, New York CNN, YouTube Locations: New York

☆ Sextortion investigation: 2 Nigerian men accused of running a global ring linked to a teen's suicide have been extradited to US, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Josh Campbell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Alleged members of a global sextortion operation that targeted more than 100 victims and led to the death of a 17-year-old boy were extradited to the United States on Sunday to face federal criminal charges, authorities said. That charge stems from an alleged online encounter that investigators say resulted in the death of 17-year-old Jordan DeMay, who died by suicide after falling victim to a sextortion scam. According to prosecutors, Samuel Ogoshi used a hacked social media account to make contact with DeMay while pretending to be a young woman. DeMay paid Ogoshi $300, but Ogoshi demanded more, authorities said. The alleged sextortion ring was disrupted by tracking victim payments through financial entities, Kowalski said.

Persons: CNN —, Samuel Ogoshi, Samson Ogoshi, Mark Totten, Jordan DeMay, Ezekiel Ejehem Robert, DeMay, Ogoshi, ” Totten, “, ”, Devin Kowalski, Kowalski, Totten Organizations: CNN, FBI, Nigeria’s, Financial, Federal Locations: United States, Lagos, Nigeria, Michigan, Southeast Asia

☆ Amid Sextortion’s Rise, Computer Scientists Tap A.I. to Identify Risky Apps
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Tripp Mickle | More About Tripp Mickle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“There are reviews out there that talk about the type of dangerous behavior that occurs, but those reviews are drowned out,” Mr. Levine said. “You can’t find them.”Predators are increasingly weaponizing apps and online services to collect explicit images. Because Apple’s and Google’s app stores don’t offer keyword searches, Mr. Levine said, it can be difficult for parents to find warnings of inappropriate sexual conduct. He doesn’t plan to profit off the site but is encouraging donations to the University of Massachusetts to offset its costs. Mr. Levine and a dozen computer scientists investigated the number of reviews that warned of child sexual abuse across more than 550 social networking apps distributed by Apple and Google.

Persons: ” Mr, Levine Organizations: ” Predators, University of Massachusetts, Apple, Google

☆ Discord bans AI-generated child sex abuse material and teen dating
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Ben Goggin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

SAN FRANCISCO — Discord's head of trust and safety said Tuesday that the popular chat platform was changing and clarifying its child safety policies including those around around teen dating and AI-generated child sexual abuse material, an announcement that comes after an NBC News investigation last month into child safety on the platform. The Washington Post reported in June that AI-generated child sex images have proliferated across the internet in recent months. The company said in a blog post announcing the changes that the updated child sexual abuse material policy would include "any text or media content that sexualizes children, including drawn, photorealistic, and AI-generated photorealistic child sexual abuse material. Under this policy, teen dating servers are prohibited on the platform and we will take action against users who are engaging in this behavior." In June, an NBC News investigation found hundreds of Discord servers that appeared to promote child abuse material, and some servers that advertised themselves as teen or child-dating servers that solicited nude images from minors.

Persons: — Discord's, John Redgrave, Discord's, Redgrave Organizations: SAN, NBC, Washington Post, NBC News Locations: San Francisco

☆ Meta launches a tool to proactively prevent sextortion of teens
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Meta is taking steps to crack down on the spread of intimate images of teenagers on Facebook and Instagram. To create a hash of an explicit image, a teen can visit the website TakeItDown.NCMEC.org to install software onto their device. Meanwhile, President Biden demanded in his latest State of the Union address more transparency about tech companies’ algorithms and how they impact their young users’ mental health. Meta recommends teens who have multiple copies of the image or edited versions make a hash for each one. “There’s no one panacea for the issue of sextortion or the issue of the non-consensual sharing of intimate images,” Davis said.

A former New York weatherman who alleged in September that he was fired after someone sent nude webcam photos of him to his employer is speaking out against online “predators” following months of silence. After he learned the photos were taken, Adame asked Unit 4 Media for more information about the user who shared them. It is also unclear if the “pictures and videos” Adame refers to in his latest Instagram post are the same images referred to in the petition or additional images. Toward the end of his latest video, Adame shared a message with his followers. Adame told NBC News that he still hasn’t found work since his departure from NY1.

☆ 'Sextortion' attacks on the rich and famous are on the rise. Here's how their lawyers discreetly fight back.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

Celebrities, sports stars, CEOs have never been more at risk of 'sextortion' attacks, lawyers say. "I'm going to blow up you and your business," the screen read. "If you can't get me money," she texted the terrified CEO, according to records reviewed by Insider, "I'm going to fuck up your whole company." East Coast, West CoastHigh-end sextortions like the case of that Manhattan CEO, one of Saland and Weisberg's recent clients, are spawning a growing legal practice. It's different in ManhattanIn contrast, Manhattan sextortion clients tend to hail not from the A-list, but from the city's vast pool of the anonymously wealthy.

☆ FBI warning on teens and ‘sextortion’ means parents need to take these steps
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Teresa Huizar | Teresa Huizar Is The Ceo Of | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

This week, the FBI issued a rare public safety alert warning of an alarming increase in “sextortion” cases targeting children and teens. One former investigator with the New Jersey State Police reported that sextortion cases have increased 400% in the last four years. One told a 13-year-old he would rape her and kill her parents if she didn’t perform certain sexual acts on camera. Tell kids to be highly selective about sharing any personal information and to never, ever share intimate images online. And anytime a child is blackmailed or extorted for sexual images, that should be reported to law enforcement.

☆ Over 3,000 minor victims were targeted in ‘sextortion’ crimes in the past year, U.S. law enforcement says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Federal law enforcement officers are cracking down on a scheme that aims to extort sexual imagery from children and teens after a dramatic increase in incidents over the past year. Sometimes, a predator shares imagery regardless of whether a victim meets payment demands, according to federal officials. Law enforcement officials say prevention is the best weapon against sextortion. The sextortion cycle generally ends when a victim tells an adult or the offender is discovered by law enforcement. "We will continue to partner with federal, state and local law enforcement to protect children from sexual exploitation in all its despicable forms."

☆ FBI Warns About Extortion Schemes Targeting Boys
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Jennifer Calfas | Aruna Viswanatha | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

More than 7,000 reports of such plots have been made to law enforcement over the past year, the FBI said. The Federal Bureau of Investigation reported a significant uptick in extortion scams aimed at thousands of children and teenagers, prompting an unusual public safety alert Monday warning of the potential for more Americans to be targeted over the holidays. The scheme involves coercing minors into sending explicit photos of themselves online, according to the FBI. Those behind the so-called financial sextortion then threaten to release the images unless the victim sends money or gift cards.

☆ Ex-Virginia trooper posed as teen for ‘sextortion’ in catfishing of girl whose family he killed, police say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

"Sextortion" drove an ex-Virginia trooper’s catfishing of a teen girl and killing of her mother and grandparents in Southern California last week, police said at a news conference Wednesday. “This is yet another horrific reminder of the predators existing online who prey on our children,” Gonzalez said. A spokesperson for the Riverside Police Department did not immediately respond to follow-up inquiries from NBC News. Police are also are investigating what Edwards' intention was with the girl following the fire and murders, officials said. When deputies with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department caught up to Edwards, the suspect fired gunshots at them, before being fatally shot by at least one deputy, police said.

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