Sextortion email scam: "I recorded you through your webcam"
These emails claim a hacker took over your device and recorded you through your webcam, and demand Bitcoin to keep the video private. Some include an old password from a data breach to seem real. They are sent to huge numbers of people.
How this scam works
The threat is meant to shame you into paying fast and alone. There is almost never a video, and paying only leads to more demands.
Common versions of the message
- A claim you were recorded
- A Bitcoin demand
- A deadline and an order not to tell anyone
What the message looks like
Email from unknown@mail.example: I know your password
I hacked your device and recorded you through your webcam. Send $1,500 in Bitcoin to the wallet below within 48 hours or I will send the video to all your contacts. Do not tell anyone or reply to this email.
Fictional example based on common, publicly reported scam patterns.
The red flags
- 1
Bluff: “recorded you through your webcam”
These mass emails are sent to millions of people
These emails go out to millions of addresses. A real password in the email usually comes from an old data breach, not your device.
- 2
Crypto demand: “Send $1,500 in Bitcoin”
Paying only leads to more demands
Paying does not end it. It marks you as someone who pays.
- 3
Deadline: “within 48 hours”
Panic is the whole point
The deadline is there to create panic.
- 4
Keep it secret: “Do not tell anyone”
Telling someone you trust takes their power away
Telling someone you trust takes away the scammer's power.
What to do
- Do not pay and do not reply.
- If the email shows a password you still use, change it everywhere and turn on two-step verification.
- Report it to the FBI at ic3.gov, then delete it.
If you already replied, clicked, or paid
- If you paid, stop all contact and report it at ic3.gov. Do not pay again.
- If someone is threatening to share real images of a person under 18, report it to NCMEC's CyberTipline and use its Take It Down service.
- Talk to someone you trust. You did nothing wrong by receiving this email.
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