Section 1: What Is Sextortion?
Financially motivated sexual extortion, widely called "sextortion", is a form of online blackmail. An offender obtains, or claims to have, a nude or sexual image of a young person and then threatens to share it with the young person's friends, family or followers unless they pay. When the victim is under 18, it is a form of child sexual abuse.
On 29 April 2024 the National Crime Agency (NCA) issued an alert to education professionals across the UK following a considerable global rise in cases. The NCA reports that these crimes are usually carried out by organised crime groups based overseas, motivated by fast money rather than sexual gratification. The Internet Watch Foundation found that 91% of the victims in UK sextortion cases it dealt with in 2023 were male, so teenage boys are a particular focus, although any young person can be targeted.
It is important to distinguish sextortion from the wider picture of nude image sharing. The UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS) uses the term "sharing nudes and semi-nudes" for the sending or posting of nude or semi-nude images, videos or live streams by young people under 18. Its guidance recognises that motivations are not always sexual or criminal: some sharing is experimental, some is coerced, and some is malicious. Sextortion sits at the aggravated, criminal end of that range because an offender is exploiting the image for money.
Section 2: How Sextortion Unfolds
Understanding the typical pattern helps staff recognise what a pupil may be describing, often in fragments.
- Contact. The offender makes contact through social media, a gaming platform or a messaging app, usually posing as a young person of a similar age, often a girl when targeting boys.
- Rapid rapport. Conversation moves quickly to flattery and flirtation, and often to a private or encrypted app.
- The image. The young person is persuaded to share an image or appear on a video call, or the offender simply fabricates one.
- The threat. The tone changes abruptly. The offender shows screenshots of the victim's followers or friends and threatens to send the image to them.
- The demand. Payment is demanded, often by bank transfer, gift cards or cryptocurrency, with a short deadline. If the young person pays, demands usually continue.
The NCA has noted that in some cases offenders have moved from first contact to blackmail in under an hour. The speed, the shame and the fear of parents or friends finding out can leave a young person feeling trapped. In rare cases sextortion has been linked to self-harm and suicide, which is why staff must treat any disclosure as urgent and respond with reassurance rather than judgement.
Section 3: The Law and Guidance
The law on images of under 18s. Under the Protection of Children Act 1978 it is an offence to take, make, share or possess an indecent image of a person under 18, even if the person in the image is the young person themselves. The UKCIS guidance is clear that the law is there to protect children, not to criminalise them, and that police have discretion not to pursue action against a young person where that is not in the public interest.
Adult involvement. The UKCIS guidance states that it does not cover adults sharing nudes or semi-nudes of under 18s: this is child sexual abuse and must be referred to the police as a matter of urgency. Sextortion by an adult offender, wherever they are based, falls into this category.
UKCIS guidance. "Sharing nudes and semi-nudes: advice for education settings working with children and young people" was last updated in March 2024. It is non-statutory advice for DSLs and senior leaders in England and should be read alongside KCSIE. A one-page overview is also available for all staff. Practitioners in Wales and Scotland should use their own national versions.
KCSIE 2026. KCSIE treats the consensual and non-consensual sharing of nude and semi-nude images as a safeguarding matter and places online safety, including extortion, within the wider safeguarding duty. All staff must know to report concerns to the DSL.
Crime and Policing Act 2026. The Act, which received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, introduces a mandatory duty for people in regulated activity to report child sexual abuse they are told about, witness, or see or hear in images, videos or recordings. Its provisions come into force in stages, so DSLs should check the current commencement position and any accompanying guidance before updating policy.
Section 4: Indicators of Concern
Behavioural and emotional indicators
- Sudden anxiety, panic or distress linked to their phone, particularly after receiving messages
- Withdrawal from friends, deleting or deactivating social media accounts
- Asking to borrow money, selling possessions, or unexplained requests for gift cards
- Fear of a particular person or group seeing something "online"
- Sudden drop in concentration or attendance
What a disclosure might sound like
- "Someone has something on me and they want money."
- "I did something stupid on a video call."
- "If I don't pay, everyone is going to see it."
- "It wasn't even real, but they've made it look like me."
High-concern indicators: refer to the DSL immediately
- Any expression of hopelessness, self-harm or suicidal thoughts
- The pupil has already paid, or is about to pay, and the demands are continuing
- Evidence that an adult is involved, or that the offender knows the pupil's school, family or address
- The image has already been shared with peers
Section 5: Staff and DSL Response Protocol
For all staff: frontline response
- Stay calm and reassure. Tell the pupil they have done the right thing by telling you and that they are not in trouble. Shame is the offender's main weapon, so your response matters.
- Never view, copy, print, forward or delete the image. Do not ask the pupil to show you or send you the image. If a device is handed to you, do not look through it: secure it, switch it off if needed, and pass it to the DSL.
- Give the immediate safety advice. The pupil should not pay or send anything further, should stop all contact with the offender, and should not delete their account or messages, as these may be needed as evidence.
- Do not promise confidentiality. Explain that you need to share this with the person whose job is to help keep them safe.
- Record and report the same day. Record what was said in the pupil's own words, with date, time and context, but no description of the image itself. Pass the concern to the DSL immediately.
For the DSL: assessment and action
- Hold an initial review. Follow the UKCIS guidance to gather the facts, consider the age and vulnerability of those involved, and decide whether there is an immediate risk of harm.
- Refer to the police where an adult is involved. Sextortion by an adult is child sexual abuse and should be reported to the police urgently. Young people can also report directly to the CEOP Safety Centre.
- Assess wellbeing and risk of harm. Ask directly and sensitively about self-harm and suicidal thoughts, and act on the answer. Make a referral to children's social care where the threshold is met.
- Involve parents or carers unless doing so would put the young person at greater risk. Support the pupil to tell them, and give parents clear advice.
- Support image removal. Under-18s can use the Report Remove tool, run by Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation, to report nude images of themselves so they can be taken down.
- Searching and devices. If a device search is needed, follow the DfE "Searching, screening and confiscation" guidance and the UKCIS advice. Images should only be viewed in exceptional circumstances, in line with that guidance, and never copied or forwarded.
- Record decisions and rationale, including any decision not to involve police or social care.
Section 6: Fictional UK School Case Study and Model Response
Background. Hartfield Academy is an 11 to 18 school in an English market town. Year 11 pupil Callum, 16, is popular, plays for the school football team and has never been on the safeguarding register.
The incident. On a Monday morning Callum's PE teacher, Mr Hughes, notices Callum sitting alone in the changing room staring at his phone, pale and shaking. When asked if he is all right, Callum says he needs £200 by four o'clock "or it's over". Mr Hughes sits down and says calmly, "Whatever this is, you're not in trouble with me. Can you tell me what's happening?"
Callum explains that on Saturday night a girl he met on a social media app persuaded him onto a video call. Afterwards "she" sent him a recording of the call and a list of his followers, including his mum and his team-mates, and demanded money. He has already sent £50 from his savings. The demands have increased.
Mr Hughes does not ask to see anything. He tells Callum not to send any more money, not to reply, and not to delete his account. He explains that he needs to bring in the DSL straight away because her job is to help in exactly this situation. He walks Callum to the DSL's office and writes up the conversation in Callum's words within the hour.
DSL response. The DSL, Mrs Akhtar, recognises the pattern of financially motivated sexual extortion. She:
- Reassures Callum again that he is a victim of a crime and has done nothing that will get him into trouble with the school.
- Asks directly how he is feeling and whether he has had any thoughts of harming himself. Callum says he "didn't sleep and felt like there was no way out" but has no plans. She records this and arranges same-day support with the school counsellor.
- Reports the matter to the police as child sexual abuse by an unknown adult offender, preserving the account details and messages without viewing or copying the recording.
- With Callum's agreement, phones his mum and supports him to explain what happened.
- Shows Callum how to use Report Remove so the recording can be blocked from being shared on participating platforms.
- Checks whether any team-mates have been contacted, and briefs the head of year to watch for any sharing among pupils.
- Records every action and decision, including her rationale for police involvement.
Review. Two weeks later Callum has blocked the account, the offender's messages have stopped, and he is attending counselling. Mrs Akhtar uses the case, anonymised, to plan a Year 10 and 11 assembly on sextortion and sends parents the school's guidance letter.
Learning points
- The first response set the tone. Mr Hughes's calm, non-judgemental opening made disclosure possible.
- No one viewed the image. Staff protected both the pupil and themselves by following the guidance.
- Risk of self-harm was asked about directly and acted on, not assumed.
- The DSL treated Callum as a victim and involved police because an adult offender was involved.
- Prevention followed. One case informed whole-school education and parent communication.
Section 7: Wider School Actions
Education. Pupils need to know three messages above all: it is not their fault, they should not pay, and help is available. RSHE and online safety lessons should cover how sextortion works, how to block and report, and how to use Report Remove, delivered without shaming or victim-blaming language.
Staff confidence. Every member of staff should know the "never view, never copy, never delete" rule and the same-day route to the DSL. The UKCIS one-page overview is a useful briefing tool.
Parents and carers. The NCA alert included a template letter for schools to support parents and carers. Schools can also point families to The Safeguard Hub's sextortion advice for parents.
Policy review. Check that your child protection, online safety and searching policies reflect the March 2024 UKCIS guidance and set out clearly who can search a device and when.
Useful links