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“I know about the secret you are keeping from your wife and everyone else. You can ignore this letter, or pay me a $8600 confidentiality fee in Bitcoin”.

It’s enough to send shivers down anyone’s spine, but these chilling words are part of a new scam targeting men.

Here’s how it works. Scammers have been sending letters to men, demanding payments using bitcoin in exchange for keeping quiet about alleged affairs. The letter also explains how to use bitcoin to make the payment.

This is a criminal extortion attempt to separate people from their money.

If you — or someone you know — gets a letter like this, report it immediately to your local police, and the FBI.

Threats, intimidation and high-pressure tactics are classic signs of a scam. Learn how to stay ahead of clever crooks with these practical tips, and check out the ways you can keep your personal information secure.

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Unwanted Calls, Emails, and Texts

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The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.

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Inar
May 11, 2020

In reply to by MRS mom

I got the same email! I was so terrified, coz it’s the first time I ever get smth like this
killermwd
January 06, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

I had the same exact thing old old password I reported to the FBI
KentA42
January 16, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

Got a similar piece a week ago. If they were truly going to threaten me they would have already done something. They made a claim about how they recorded me with my own webcam. I'm sorry, but its rather hard to record me with my webcam when its not even plugged into the computer! So yeah, 100% bogus. And saying they can't be tracked? I'm quite sure that the FBI has ways to track a bitcoin 'address'.
amp2004
April 29, 2019

In reply to by KentA42

i got one like this today, but on my work email. and the computer does not even have a web cam or microphone lol
aBiNeR
August 17, 2019

In reply to by KentA42

My guess is, some large company got hacked by these thieves, they stole the usernames and passwords for thousands of innocent user accounts, and then they just spam these innocent people with these bitcoin threats via email. It's the only explanation as to how they are obtaining passwords.
thesescammersa…
April 14, 2020

In reply to by aBiNeR

Yup you nailed it! If you look it up on google, (or you might have already gotten an email stating that:) there have been many websites that were breached and leaked millions of people’s account information including emails and passwords. I received an email not too long ago that said my email is one of these that we’re exposed and recommended me to change my password immediately to all of my acccounts. Don’t worry if you’ve gotten an email like this there is no video or photo that was taken of you, simply just block the email and delete it. Then next step is to make sure you don’t sign up your email on any websites that aren’t trustworthy or do not look updated/ secured.
Loralie
January 23, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

Same here.. it was tempting for me reply to the scammer - they had an old password also. My email address is usually mistaken as a male ID. Local police (Baltimore) could care less, there are too many murders and armed robberies around here, police don't even care about property damage.
Lm1234
January 29, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

I found the same email in my spam folder yesterday. Also containing a password. My concern was how they got the password. I used that password for 6 accounts. I have since changed the passwords. 1 account was for Play On. 2 were local businesses and 3 were for sites that were larger and would have made the news if there was a known hack? Any similarities in your accounts/password?
Ddteza
April 10, 2020

In reply to by Lm1234

Yep Im as shocked as you seeing my old password poped up. But what scared me is that the hacker said by reading this email 'i have to control of all your details"
Worried
April 29, 2020

In reply to by Ddteza

I received an email with an old password that said they hacked me too and gave me 24 hours to pay them 2000 bitcoin i don't think I have any accounts with that password anymore but I don't remember. Did anything ever happen to anyone and I don't know where to report this. I thought there would be a link. I don't have a webcam but I'm worried they got in my phone? This is stressing me out.
Pissed off in …
January 29, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

I just received the exact same scam, they threaten to put a video of me watching porn onto social media if I don't pay $762 in bitcoin in 24 hours. And, like you, they had an old password of mine that really worried me. Sorry I can't help you as I too am looking for answers.
Ticked off in …
February 07, 2019

In reply to by Pissed off in …

I just got the very same email. I first contacted my state's Attorney General's office and was told to report to FCC. Called the FCC and they said to contact the FTC. I'm going to contact my local FBI office.
JJB
March 11, 2019

In reply to by Ticked off in …

The email that I just received is very similarly worded. Freaks me out.
Myemailaddress
March 13, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

I got the exact same one frannygranny. I’ve had a sleepless night worrying about it, because they did have a password i used to use a lot. And they claimed they had a video of me watching porn, that they’d send to all my contacts. It was not an ideal way to spend my birthday, putting on this brave face, yet worrying that an email would make all my friends laugh at me. I eventually ended up at the same conclusion as you. So what?
Amelia Louisa
May 16, 2019

In reply to by Myemailaddress

I Literally got that same email today. It said it would release my webcam to all my contacts of me watching porn. It said send 988.00 in bitcoins to not be released. It's a scare tactic and scam. Seriously, don't stress it.
jth2486
August 14, 2019

In reply to by Amelia Louisa

its under investigation on the price with me was 978 my serice provider is looking into it
MaryMary
March 15, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

So has anyone actually been targeted with the alleged threats for not paying?
Old Password
April 02, 2019

In reply to by Frannygranny

I experienced the same thing as everyone else here -- Found the email in my spam folder. In y case, the old password was from Yahoo mail (about 20 years old). I recall a major breach of security at Yahoo a couple of years ago. I wonder if that is were the old passwords came from.
Marjie MAM
December 03, 2018

In reply to by Tzarita88

You don't understand. I never used bitcoin.It is the way the scammer demands payment; through bitcoin, in an attempt to remain anonymous. Here is what they said to me: "Thu‌s, I e‌xpe‌ct pa‌yme‌nt fro‌m yo‌u‌ i‌nte‌nde‌d fo‌r my qu‌i‌e‌t. I be‌li‌e‌ve‌ $900 i‌s a‌n a‌ppro‌pri‌a‌te‌ pri‌ce‌ re‌ga‌rdi‌ng thi‌s! Pa‌y wi‌th Bi‌tco‌i‌ns. My BTC wa‌lle‌t i‌s 1P67uv2wEFCGZhU3DgH7azRxmrXc9kyX3g If yo‌u‌ do‌ no‌t re‌a‌lly u‌nde‌rsta‌nd ho‌w to‌ do‌ thi‌s - su‌bmi‌t i‌n to‌ Go‌o‌gle‌ 'ho‌w to‌ tra‌nsfe‌r mo‌ne‌y to‌ a‌ bi‌tco‌i‌n wa‌lle‌t'. It i‌s no‌t di‌ffi‌cu‌lt."
Hana
August 21, 2018
This Bitcoin scam is not only targeting males! I am a female and have also received a similar threat. The email had somehow confiscated one of my passwords and threated to use pictures, etc. to make pornographic videos and posters using my face. They also demanded that I pay thousands of dollars in Bitcoin. I immediately recognized this as a scam, changed all sites using that password and did not respond. I wish I had kept the email and shared with the FBI. Thank you for telling us how to handle receipt of such and I will definitely report it to the FBI should I receive any similar emails.
Cibil
August 21, 2018

In reply to by Hana

I have received exactly the same email. I told them I was not a tech friendly guy and that they should send a paypal email as I do not know about how botcoin works. They never responded. Had they sent the paypal email, I would have reported to authorities.
JC
August 22, 2018

In reply to by Hana

I didn't know to forward to FBI instead of deleting and holding my breath. Glad I read this!
Just Me
October 21, 2018

In reply to by Hana

I am going threw this right now. A few days ago it was my phone. Blocked. Claimed the porno crap n demanding $500. As if the fbi use vanilla cards to collect fees. I new something was wrong. Needless to say i had to get a new phone. Yesterday i got the email n the fool wants me to pay $7000.
SSMinow
November 04, 2018

In reply to by Just Me

Hi, I just got one of these e-mails. Question, did they actually block your phone? They're saying they will block my phone, too. The password they said they had wasn't valid though, but was very similar to one I'd used years and years ago. I reported this to the fbi, copied and pasted it right into the fbi website complaint form!
spyder
March 05, 2019

In reply to by Just Me

If they locked your phone, it may not be fake. Be careful, & report it to FBI.
Marjie MAM
December 03, 2018

In reply to by Hana

I'm also a female that received the same type of scam email. They're letting me off cheap though! They only want $900 for now but they will probably come back asking for more if I follow their instructions. If they want to plaster my 62 year old face all over the internet with porn let them! hahaha I don't think anyone would find it very interesting.
Lora
February 20, 2019

In reply to by Marjie MAM

Recently got email wanting Bitcoin ransom. Had my email name and pw.
Don't use your…
August 21, 2018
I already have this and I find it helpful . You should of done this years ago. I tell people about the scams that you send out.
Lomba.alber
August 21, 2018
This hasn't happened to me but i do file a lot of reports of scam numbers. I usually get them every day. A lot from other states. ...
csdfg2
August 21, 2018
Thanks FTC, for your ongoing efforts! I received two of these scam emails within one week. While local law enforcement did not take a report, stating that since I had not suffered any loss there was nothing they could do, both the FTC and the FBI took my information. There has been no further action from the scammers. Keep up the good work, you guys!
Einstein
August 28, 2018

In reply to by csdfg2

Tell your local law enforcement to stop being lazy. Attempted crimes are still crimes regardless if they payout or not. Do they still investigate attempted murder if no one dies .. derp.
Elf
August 21, 2018
How can I make this as spam on my iPhone?
FTC Staff
October 30, 2018

In reply to by Archo

Follow the link in this blog to www.fbi.gov/contact-us.

Ambitious1
April 13, 2020

In reply to by FTC Staff

I just wanted to say thank you for the link to report the scam to the FBI! I received an email from the hacker saying the same thing basically yesterday. My first gut reaction was that it was a scam, but then as most people do, you get a sick feeling in stomach wondering if it could be true because every one has alone time at some point and you don't realize your devices cameras can be hacked with spyware. However this is an extortion scam and I gladly submitted a copy of the email and complaint to the FBI. Thanks for the link
PonderosaOH
August 21, 2018
I am a female and received such a scam letter, stating that they had pics of me involved in sex acts and would expose me if I didn't pay them thousands in Bitcoin. I didn't think twice about informing the FTC. Wish I had know to forward the info to the FBI. But I am grateful the word is out to save people unnecessary grief.
Berryman
August 21, 2018
I got a similar scam over a week ago but it was directed towards porn. I deleted it.
Matt
October 02, 2018

In reply to by Berryman

I've had this a few times now. I knew it was a scam immediately - but was concerned as they started the email with my password. I immediately changed the password.
Me
August 22, 2018
After receiving one of these I immediately filed an on line report with the FBI and notified everyone on my mailing list that they could receive an email with a lot of pornography. I explained the attempt to blackmail me and the threats of the lowlife that thought that I was as dumb as he/she is. I have yet to hear back from the the scum that sent the blackmail.
Concerned consumer
August 22, 2018
My sister and co-worker received this e-mail. I will let them know. Thank You!!!
IT Professional
August 22, 2018
I received something similar to this. It tried to claim legitimacy by showing a one of my passwords (supposedly gathered by a keystroke logger and a hijacked webcam). I did some research and found that the password was an old LinkedIn password of mine from 4+ years ago, probably acquired through a LinkedIn data breach and sold to the extorter. I ignored the threat email, since there was no way its claims were true. It was purely an attempt to scare me into complying with its demands. Lesson: Change your passwords regularly, especially after reported data breaches. Also, keep your device's protection software current. Do not immediately click on links or attachments in emails you receive. Take time to inspect them for authenticity. Do not panic if you receive an extortion email. Alert the appropriate authorities.
Frustrated guy
August 30, 2018
Thank you for informing me about all these scams. I get calls on my cell phone daily trying to get my credit card information by telling me that they are trying to give me a lower interest rate. How can I stop this? I am already on the no call list.
PartyHardyDude
September 02, 2018
I'm 24 yrs old and a single male. So far, I'm still being attacked, their are many groups of unwanted people within my life, I've been receiving many letters of different checks and I haven't succeeded any of my financial goals. I'm exhausted of trying to report each problem after many attempts in contacting the FBI and you guys and NOTHING in return. I know there's something fishy going on and all I'd like is my happy life back.. With a happy future... Please, I'd like to start a new ch. In my life because this is just stupid... Like at least a deal or something...
PartyHardyDude
September 02, 2018
I am NOT the guy to sabotage. I got great knowledge so hire me asap and let's collaborate
PartyHardyDude
September 02, 2018
P.s. ...get a load of this, the more I continuesly get attacked/bully etc., VALUE goes down. Its a long story/lesson to type right now but, the facts are there.. Just look at specific statistics since 2015, there's no need for stalking but more like pay me and lets get this show on the road..
NJbusinessowner
September 06, 2018
Just received a letter in the mail demanding payment in botcoin, person whom sent it indicates he was doing a job in my hometown, much of the wording similar to other scams i have read about, again with the bitcoin account, why is it that bitcoin, being used by these scammers, cant shut these accounts down, how is it that a currency that is supposed to be the future of exchange allowing criminals such as these low life jerks to operate? This just gives bitcoin a very bad name and shows that its not ready for public use and as long as bitcoin exchanges allow this it casts a dark shadow on the value of its utility as a currency alternative. And where is the IRS on all this money exchanging? Illegal activities are still income that must be reported so there is both a criminal and a tax crime going on here.
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