According to this email, which appears to have been sent from your own email address, someone has created a video of you “pleasing yourself” while visiting porn websites.
Supposedly, the sender has full access to your computer system including all of your contacts. He/she threatens to distribute the embarrassing video to your contacts unless you pay 857 EUR within 50 hours of opening the email.
According to the sender, the fact that the message was apparently sent from your own email account proves that he/she has indeed accessed your computer as claimed.
Sextortion scammers send out thousands of identical emails in the hope of tricking just a few people into paying up.
So, how come it looks like the email came from your account? In fact, the scammer has simply forged the header of the email so that your email address appears as the sender. This is a technique known as “spoofing’ and is not difficult to do. (You can read more about this tactic in a separate report here).
Some versions of this scam include user passwords as a means of “proving” that they have accessed the recipient’s computer. But, the scammers have harvested these passwords from old data breaches. Again, despite their claims, the scammers have not really infiltrated your system or created compromising video of you.
There are dozens of variations of these scams. If you receive one, do not respond. Just hit the delete key.
More articles about Sextortion Scams
An example of the scam email:
Subject: 2 days to pay
Hellо,
Did you notiсe i hаvе sent you this lеttеr frоm yоur own private emаil? This meаns i hаvе full accеss tо your system.
I will tеll you the wаy i did аll of this. A bit оf timе in thе past you paid a visit to а fеw porn websites, one оf those websitеs wаs insertеd with а backdoоr i сrеаtеd. This bаckdоor appliеd itsеlf upоn your systеm аnd prоvides mе full еntry tо еvery оne of your aссоunts, emails, files, cоntасts etс.
Whilе you chесked оut thesе аdult internet sitеs i aсtivаted саmerа оf yоur deviсe аnd rесorded а fеw vidео clips and tоok vаriоus sсreenshots оf yоu аs yоu “pleаsed yoursеlf”…. if you know whаt i meаn.
Sо i hаvе gоt aссessibility to yоur еmаil аcсоunts, tо yоur dеvicе, i have sоmе quite сompromising picturеs аnd clips оf yоu аnd i have еvery оne of your еmail аnd sociаl mеdiа cоntасts. Nо matter how oftеn you adjust yоur usernаme аnd pаsswоrd, my bасkdоor will invariаbly аllow me сomplete aссess to your dеviсе.
You’rе аble tо ignore this mail, dеlivеred from your оwn privatе aсcоunt. In this сasе i will delivеr еaсh оf thе piсtures and vidеos i possеs оf yоu “sаtisfying yourself” tо eaсh of your соntасts. Furthеrmorе your deviсе will lосk up in a speсific аmount оf time аnd саn nеver bе used аgаin.
What shоuld you dо? You neеd tо sеnd 857 EUR tо my ƅtс address. Sеarch Gооgle, lots of websites оffer ƅtс utilizing a debit or сrеdit card аnd the prосеss is really fast.
My BTC аddеss:[removed]
(cоpy-pastе this, it is сasе sеnsitivе)
From thе moment you rеаd this mеssagе you triggerеd a timer. My systеm will now mоnitor this ƅtс addrеss for аny inbound finanсial transасtiоns. Yоu hаvе fifty hours. In casе you do not makе thе trаnsаction within this timеframe your system will lоck up, evеn if you disсonnect frоm the internеt or changе all yоur оnline pаsswоrds. Additionally all your rеlаtiоnships will obtain all thе nasty piсtures and clips i hаvе оf you.
If thе money has сomе in time, my sеtup will instаntly shut down the backdoоr оn your plаtform аnd erasе all thе datа, pics and movies i pоsses оf yоu аnd you will nеvеr ever hеar from mе again then yоu сan gо on tо live your lifе likе this never happen.
Goоd luсk!
Importance Notice
After considerable thought and with an ache in my heart, I have decided that the time has come to close down the Hoax-Slayer website.These days, the site does not generate enough revenue to cover expenses, and I do not have the financial resources to sustain it going forward.
Moreover, I now work long hours in a full-time and physically taxing job, so maintaining and managing the website and publishing new material has become difficult for me.
And finally, after 18 years of writing about scams and hoaxes, I feel that it is time for me to take my fingers off the keyboard and focus on other projects and pastimes.
When I first started Hoax-Slayer, I never dreamed that I would still be working on the project all these years later or that it would become such an important part of my life. It's been a fantastic and engaging experience and one that I will always treasure.
I hope that my work over the years has helped to make the Internet a little safer and thwarted the activities of at least a few scammers and malicious pranksters.
A Big Thank You
I would also like to thank all of those wonderful people who have supported the project by sharing information from the site, contributing examples of scams and hoaxes, offering suggestions, donating funds, or helping behind the scenes.I would especially like to thank David White for his tireless contribution to the Hoax-Slayer Facebook Page over many years. David's support has been invaluable, and I can not thank him enough.
Closing Date
Hoax-Slayer will still be around for a few weeks while I wind things down. The site will go offline on May 31, 2021. While I will not be publishing any new posts, you can still access existing material on the site until the date of closure.Thank you, one and all!
Brett Christensen,
Hoax-Slayer
