Proactive Protection

How Extortionists Choose Targets

Understanding how they think helps us stay safer.

They look for:

• People who respond emotionally to pressure
• Accounts with lots of personal information visible
• Weak passwords or no two-factor authentication
• People who seem isolated or unlikely to report
• Cultural contexts where shame is a powerful lever
• Financial vulnerability or signs of wealth

They avoid:

• People who seem informed and cautious
• Accounts with strong privacy settings
• Anyone who might report quickly
• Targets who have support networks

Our goal: Signal that we’re not worth the effort.

Digital Security Basics

Passwords

• Use unique passwords for every account – especially email, banking, and social media
• Make them long – 12+ characters, mixing letters, numbers, and symbols
• Use a password manager – Bitwarden (free) or 1Password are good options
• Never reuse passwords – if one account is breached, others stay safe

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

This is our best protection. Even if someone steals a password, they can’t get in without the second factor.

Enable 2FA on:

• Email (Gmail, Outlook, etc.)
• Banking and financial apps
• Social media (Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, etc.)
• Any account with personal information

Best options:

1. Authentication app (Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator) – most secure
2. SMS codes – better than nothing, but less secure
3. Security keys (YubiKey) – most secure, but requires hardware

Check If We’ve Been Breached

Visit haveibeenpwned.com and enter email addresses. If data has appeared in known breaches, change those passwords immediately.

Social Media Protection

Social media is often how extortionists find and research targets.

Lock Down Our Profiles

What NOT to Share Publicly

• Phone numbers
• Address or workplace location
• Travel plans (especially in real-time)
• Financial information or signs of wealth
• Family members' names and details
• Daily routines or schedules
• Anything we wouldn't want a stranger to know

Friend/Follow Requests

• Don’t accept requests from people we don’t know
• Be suspicious of attractive strangers who message first
• Verify unexpected requests from “friends” through another channel – their account may be hacked
• Romance scams often start with a simple friend request

Recognizing Scams Early

Red Flags in Online Conversations

🚩 They escalate quickly – professing love or trust unusually fast

🚩 They ask for photos – especially intimate ones, early in the relationship

🚩 They avoid video calls – or their video “doesn’t work”

🚩 Their story doesn’t add up – details change, things don’t make sense

🚩 They have a crisis – and need money urgently

🚩 They know things about us – that we didn’t tell them (researched social media)

🚩 They threaten – even subtle threats (“I hope nothing bad happens…”)

If Something Feels Off, Trust Our Gut

We don’t owe strangers on the internet our time, attention, or benefit of the doubt. It’s okay to:

• Stop responding
• Block without explanation
• Say no to any request
• Verify their identity through other means

Protecting Our Families

Extortionists often target family members or use family as leverage.

Talk to Our Families

• Have open conversations about online safety
• Make sure everyone knows: never send money based on a call or message alone
• Establish a family code word for verifying emergencies
• Discuss what extortion looks like so it’s not a surprise

→ Family Conversation Guide

Protect Elderly Family Members

Seniors are frequently targeted. Help them:

• Set up strong passwords and 2FA
• Recognize scam calls and messages
• Know that government agencies don’t call demanding immediate payment
• Feel comfortable asking family before sending money

Protect Young Family Members

Teens and young adults face sextortion. Help them:

• Understand that intimate images can be used against them
• Know they can come to us without judgment if something happens
• Recognize manipulation tactics
• Report to a trusted adult if threatened

Financial Protection

Never Send Money Under Pressure

Legitimate organizations don’t:

• Demand immediate payment by phone
• Ask for gift cards, cryptocurrency, or wire transfers
• Threaten arrest if we don’t pay immediately
• Refuse to give us time to verify

If pressured for money: Hang up. Call the organization directly using a number we find ourselves (not one they give).

Monitor Our Accounts

• Check bank statements regularly
• Set up transaction alerts
• Review credit reports annually (Equifax, TransUnion)
• Consider a credit freeze if we’ve been targeted

Be Careful with Financial Information

• Never share banking details over unsolicited calls
• Don’t click links in texts claiming to be from our bank
• Verify requests by calling the bank directly

If Already Being Targeted

Prevention isn’t just for “before” – these steps help even when currently dealing with extortion:

1. Secure accounts NOW – change passwords, enable 2FA
2. Lock down social media – make profiles private, limit what’s visible
3. Stop responding – silence is powerful
4. Document everything – screenshots, save messages
5. Get support – we don’t have to handle this alone

→ What To Do If Being Extorted

→ Victim Support

Quick Security Checklist

Use this checklist to protect ourselves and our families:

Accounts:

• ☐ Unique passwords on all important accounts
• ☐ Password manager set up
• ☐ 2FA enabled on email
• ☐ 2FA enabled on banking
• ☐ 2FA enabled on social media
• ☐ Checked haveibeenpwned.com

Social Media:

• ☐ Profiles set to private/friends only
• ☐ Personal info hidden from strangers
• ☐ Friend list not public
• ☐ Location sharing disabled
• ☐ Reviewed and cleaned up old posts

Family:

• Had a conversation about online safety
• Family code word established
• Elderly relatives’ accounts secured
• Young family members know they can come to us

Financial:

• Transaction alerts enabled
• Know not to send money under pressure
• Know how to verify suspicious requests

Remember

Prevention is not about blame. Even careful people can be targeted. These steps reduce risk – they don’t eliminate it.

If something happens despite our precautions, we are still victims of a crime, not people who failed to protect ourselves.

The goal is to make ourselves harder targets, so extortionists move on to easier ones. Every step we take helps.