What is Sextortion?
It is referred to an abuse of power in which powerful individuals, that is people entrusted with authority- such as Government officials, judges, educators, law enforcement personnel and employment. They seek to demand sexual favours and in exchange promise to help.
Examples: Teachers who trade good grades for sex with students, government officials who request sexual favours to obtain licences or permits and employers who have Sexual demand in return to provide jobs.
Plus, the Web cams make it very simple for people to record themselves or (get secretly recorded).
Sextortion is considered to be rising in popularity among criminals due to the attractive nature of the crime. It's very easy to lure in victims specially teenagers who fall into the trap of these predators. Therefore, the teenagers either give in to the demands or commit suicide due to the fear of facing the embarrassing repercussions of answering to the society.
The target of these sextortionists are mainly under 18 victims who can be easily manipulated by the sugar coated sentences of these sex predators.
The dominance of this crime has reached to such an extent that it's crucial that everyone should be aware of what to look out for.
The most famous methods of this crime include: Social media, Hacked accounts and Hacked Web cams. That's why it is mandatory to make sure that all the actions should be taken by keeping in the above.
Examples: Teachers who trade good grades for sex with students, government officials who request sexual favours to obtain licences or permits and employers who have Sexual demand in return to provide jobs.
"Sextortion is a broad category of sexual exploitation in which the abuse of power is the means of intimidation or manipulation which also includes blackmailing the victim to give in money or more sexual demands by the sextortionist."With the rising number in the cases of sextortion, a lot of cyber crime awareness campaigns have been initiated by the Government to make people aware of this horrendous crime. The ever increasing popularity of social media, messaging apps and dating sites, the exchange of explicit material has become very easy.
Plus, the Web cams make it very simple for people to record themselves or (get secretly recorded).
Sextortion, a rising Cyber Crime!
Sextortion is considered to be rising in popularity among criminals due to the attractive nature of the crime. It's very easy to lure in victims specially teenagers who fall into the trap of these predators. Therefore, the teenagers either give in to the demands or commit suicide due to the fear of facing the embarrassing repercussions of answering to the society.
The target of these sextortionists are mainly under 18 victims who can be easily manipulated by the sugar coated sentences of these sex predators.
The dominance of this crime has reached to such an extent that it's crucial that everyone should be aware of what to look out for.
The most famous methods of this crime include: Social media, Hacked accounts and Hacked Web cams. That's why it is mandatory to make sure that all the actions should be taken by keeping in the above.
How to avoid Sextortion?
You can avoid and deal with sextortion in very easy ways.1. Always think rational when it comes to the cyber world
We all want to believe that true love exists but make that the true love you're talking to is a real person and not some facade. We're not asking you to be skeptical but be wise enough to differentiate between the right and wrong.2. Never Share intimate images or videos
Everyone is mature enough to know that sharing any private content to anyone whom you don't completely trust can land you into serious trouble. In simple words, "Don't share any intimate content to anyone in the cyber world."3. Monitor your child's online activities
As told earlier, the victim's are mainly the minors. So as a parent you should be aware of your child's online activities as well as be frank and understanding with them so that in case of any mistake or trouble they directly come to you for help.Sextortion Laws in India
Jammu & Kashmir was the first state to recognise 'sextortion' as a crime. In December 2018, amendments were made to two state laws, according to which 'Sextortion' is a non-bailable offence in J&K and one can get upto 5 years in jail.
There is a lack of clarity on the laws in other states and at the central level. Offenders in such crimes exploit this and also the victim's silence on the matter. That's why everyone must be aware of the laws that exist regarding this.
- Section 108(1)(i)(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code empowers the victim to call the magistrate of her locality and inform him/her about the person whom she believes could circulate any obscene matter. The magistrate has the power to detain such person(s) and can order him to sign a bond to stop him from circulating the material. This might deter the accused. This is a quick remedial section because the victim can lodge the complaint with the magistrate without any direct evidence against the accused.
- Section 292 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) incriminates any person who distributes or threatens to disperse any intimate and compromising images of someone through any electronic means, including apps and other social media.
- Under Section 354C of the IPC, if a picture of woman is clicked in an obscene manner without her knowledge and is distributed, a voyeurism case can also be filed along with the aid of other relevant sections from the Information Technology Act.
"Be rational and stay safe in the cyber world."
Saher Hiba Khan is currently pursuing B.a. (hons.) English (2nd year) from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. She loves to write on social issues which are the real evils of our society. She also loves to write poetry whenever the monster living in her head wants to pen down its feelings. "I just want people to wake up from their sleeps and face the reality of our Hypocritical Society."
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