‘Sextortion’ gang targets Lankan social media users

The Sri Lanka Computer Emergency Readiness Team (SLCERT) has identified a widespread organized extortion scheme targeting social media users in the country. The scammers behind this illicit operation are believed to be based in India.

The modus operandi of the criminals involves compromising the social media accounts of victims by adding their family members and friends as contacts. This creates the illusion that the fraudulent profile belongs to a known acquaintance. The scam typically begins with a simple "Hi" message sent through Instagram from an account using an attractive young woman's profile picture.

Once the target responds, the scammers monitor the conversation and re-establish contact after several days. At this point, they use the profile picture to entice the victim to continue communicating. Following this, the scammers send provocative photographs of the woman and attempt to persuade the victim to return the favor by sharing similar images or videos, often during WhatsApp video calls.

Through this process, the scammers obtain nude videos or other compromising footage of the victim. With this material in hand, they launch an extortion campaign. According to SLCERT, victims are threatened with the release of this information to their family members and relatives unless they pay a demanded ransom.

The cyber security agency has warned the public to exercise extreme caution when interacting with messages, accepting friend requests, or answering calls from unknown social media accounts or telephone numbers. They advise users to be particularly wary of strangers who rapidly establish personal connections online or pressure them into exchanging intimate photographs or videos.

This cautionary message comes as there is increasing concern over the use of social media and messaging platforms for cyber-enabled fraud, blackmail, and extortion.