Don't get drawn into dialogue' A blackmail victim's story and the mission to raise awareness

A blackmail victim's story and the mission to raise awareness

- Libby Brooks

It was after midnight last November when Simon's son burst into his parents' bedroom and told them "something terrible's happened". Sixteen-year-old Nathan had been targeted by online criminals in a sextortion scam.

"We've had lots of conversations about this stuff with him over the years, but don't think your child is too sensible to do this," said Simon.

The anonymous blackmailer was initially demanding £50 - messaging then repeatedly calling the frightened teenager - or he would share Nathan's intimate image with all his contacts.

"He was very upset, I'd say hysterical at the start, but after an hour or so he'd calmed down. He said his main worry was what we would think, and once he'd established that we were on his side that was like a massive weight off his shoulders."

Staying calm was the key, said Simon, looking back at how he and his wife had handled the crisis.

"She started Googling what to do and pretty quickly discovered Report Remove."

Run by the NSPCC and the Internet Watch Foundation, Report Remove, allows children to anonymously flag intimate images or videos of themselves that they have been tricked into sending to sextortion fraudsters. The service then turns those images into a "hash", or digital fingerprint, which is shared with major tech platforms, which can take the image down or prevent it from being uploaded.