What to do if you're a victim of 'sextortion'

Cases of "sextortion" have more than doubled in the UK in the past year and four men have taken their own lives after being targeted by criminals online, according to figures released by the police.

"Sextortion" is a form of blackmail where victims are befriended online by criminals using a fake identity who then persuade them to perform sexual acts in front of a webcam.

Using an attractive woman to entice the victim, organised crime croups then threaten to share videos with victims' friends and family unless they agree to pay a huge sum of money.

The National Crime Agency (NCA), which investigates these cases, said some of the victims were as young as 14. The highest percentage of those affected were men aged between 21 and 30.

"This is often because victims feel ashamed or embarrassed, but of course criminals are relying on that reaction in order to succeed," NCA's Roy Sinclar said.

The NCA has shared tips on what to do if you're being targeted:

1. Don't panic. The police will take your case seriously, dealing with it in confidence and without judgement.

2. Don't communicate further with the criminals. Take screen shots of all your correspondence. Suspend your Facebook account (don’t delete it) and use the online reporting process to the sites such as Skype and YouTube to have any video blocked. Set up an alert in case the video resurfaces.

3. Don't pay. Many victims who have paid continue to get demands for higher amounts of money. In some cases, even when demands have been met, offenders will still go on to post the explicit videos

4. Preserve evidence. Make a note of all details provided by the offenders and DO NOT DELETE ANY CORRESPONDENCE.

The NCA also released this video to raise awareness on sextortion:

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