Scammers Target Online Daters Through Scandalous Striptease Webcam Ransomware Schemes

We live in an uncertain world and we happen to be in the know of the latest sneaky tricks hackers are up to on the evil ends of earth. In our latest 'evil-doer' findings, we have been alerted to a finding by the BBC on a scheme where blackmailing scammers are targeting online daters through a forceful and demoralized approach.

Reportedly, a new hacker scheme has been uncovered to utilize a dating or social network where a woman initiates contact with men. After the woman sparks up a chat, she then offers up a proposition that she will strip for them on webcam and that the men will return the favor by doing the same in front of their webcam.

Before both parties have supposedly stripped in front of the webcam, the men are presented with a pre-recorded video of her getting undressed. In most circumstances, the men keep their end of the deal and reciprocate the 'deed' in front of their own webcam while they were unknowingly recorded.

Afterwards, trouble ensues when a message is sent from the woman stating "Have a look at this video I've taken of you. I am going to put it on YouTube unless you send me some money." Most would immediately think that the message is some type of joke but, in fact, actual victims have reported instances where they saw the alleged "video" of themselves, and it was an actual video revealing their face and "everything" else.

The scheme later commences with the woman asking the victim to wire 500 euros ($600) to her so she will not post the video online or on YouTube. If this ransom threat does not work, the scammer will reveal themselves as Ivory Coast police agents through fake ransom sites, similar to many of the ransomware threats that we have reported on in the past. Victims have reported cases where they were asked to pay fines repeatedly sometimes resulting in thousands of dollars paid out to scammers.

Most times victims feel immediate shame and will never report the "full details" of their webcam stripping excursion to authorities. Instead, victims will deplete their bank account as an act of cover-up, or retain specific details from authorities when they do decide to file a report. Reportedly, at the very end of his wits, a blackmailer was so aggressive in their approach that a victim killed himself after he saw no end to his ordeal.

In a way, this scam elaborates and builds off of other popular ransomware, such as Ukash Virus, FBI Moneypak Ransomware and even the French Gendarmerie ransomware.

The victims of the scheme are usually taken to a fake website made to look like it belongs to a local police department. Most often, the police departments are French using fake documents accusing the victim of performing the act of stripping in front of minors.

Cybercrime expert Vincent Lemoine from the French Gendarmerie's criminal investigation unit says that they believe that several blackmail attempts such as this take place every day in France. Coincidently, the Gendarmerie department is a well-known ransomware threat that mostly targets French-speaking communities but has been known to branch out to other regions of the world seeking out potential victims.

Lemoine also said, "Unfortunately, not everyone who finds themselves victims of this crime is coming forward to the police because these blackmail attempts are so intimate." In some cases, the victims may turn to reputation management organizations for further advice.

By placing the victims in such a vulnerable position, sometimes literally, the blackmailer has the upper hand. Those in the compromised position of being recorded stripping will not think of the fact that they can remove a recorded video of them from the Internet with a little effort. Instead, victims will sometimes abide to the blackmail by paying the professed fine.

French police literally have their hands full with this new blackmail scam. There is not much the authorities can do after the blackmail attempt is reported as most of the scammers are located outside of France. Moreover, authorities abroad are unable to extend investigations onto other regions.