Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - It's a crime in the high tech world we live in: Sextortion.
New York State Police says this is a cybercrime you can help keep your teens from becoming victims of by keeping an eye on what they do online.
Listen to WBEN NOW!
So what is sextortion?
"Sextortion is a crime where your teen sent a nude picture of themselves to somebody that they believe that they know," said State Trooper James O'Callaghan in an interview with WBEN. "They may have met them on social media, they may even be someone they know. But in turn, that person uses that picture to say, 'Hey, I want to $5,000 or $10,000 or I'm gonna send this picture to your whole friends list. I'm gonna make the public know that you know, this picture exists.'"
If that happens, O'Callaghan says the parent needs to dial 9-1-1 immediately, but don't delete any of the messaging or pictures, as police will need that for their investigation.
O'Callaghan says anybody could commit this crime.
"They can be someone that's not even from the state that it originated from," he said. "Let's say it's a child here in Western New York, it could be someone as far as California."
Because of digital fingerprint kind of technology and printing, O'Callaghan says the computer crimes unit will work on that and come up with a resolution. O'Callaghan adds New York State Police works with federal agencies as part of their investigation as well.
When it comes to why criminals commit this crime, O'Callaghan believes it basically comes down to money and embarrassment.
"Sometimes it'll just pay the fee," he said. "This happens a lot with our teens and young kids, because they're more naïve to send something like that. But that doesn't mean someone later in life with a little bit more money, can't send something very similar. And instead of dealing with the embarrassment of it all, instead of calling the police to go through that process, they'll simply just pay it out, which obviously means that doesn't always end there."
As a parent, O'Callaghan recommends to go all-in with your kids on screen time.
"When you have a teen, the more screen time they have in any social app, the more of a chance there is of anxiety and depression. So set up those parameters," O'Callaghan advised.
O'Callaghan adds for parents, you should know your teen's passwords, and have that discussion about online safety.
"Even if you're not a tech savvy person, learn it. It's one of those things where you didn't grew up with a cell phone, maybe a smartphone, but you use it occasionally. Now as an adult, and you don't know much about what your teens doing," O'Callaghan said. "You have to be all-in. You have to give it the extra little bit, and get into their world. Meet them where they're at."