Online threats
Paying a blackmailer never ends the demands. Reporting does.
Common types
- Video-call sextortion — recording a video call and demanding money to stop it being sent to your contacts.
- Threats to distribute images or videos (digital sex crime)
- Threats to publish personal information
- Threats to tell your family or employer
- Online harassment and stalking — see stalking-emergency
What to do immediately
- Don't reply and don't pay. Once you pay, the demands continue.
- Screenshot everything — messages, IDs, account numbers, URLs. Don't delete them.
- Block them, but keep the evidence.
- Report to 112 or at ecrm.police.go.kr.
- If sexual images are involved, ask the Digital Sex Crime Victim Support Centre (02-735-8994) for deletion support.
- Tell people close to you in advance. Saying "I'm being blackmailed like this" drains the threat of its power.
What not to do
- Paying
- Negotiating with the blackmailer
- Deleting evidence — it hampers the investigation.
- Carrying it alone
Where to go
- 112 police
- ecrm.police.go.kr cybercrime reporting
- 02-735-8994 Digital Sex Crime Victim Support Centre (deletion support)
- 1366 Women's Emergency Hotline (24 hours)
- 1345 interpretation support
Questions people ask
I'm too ashamed to report it. The victim has done nothing wrong. Counsellors handle these cases constantly. You can start anonymously.
My residence status is precarious. You can report being a victim of crime. If worried, consult 1345 or a migrant organisation first. See ngo-support.
I've already paid. Report to 112 immediately and ask your bank for a payment stop. Never send more.
The video is already circulating. 02-735-8994 provides deletion support. Don't give up.
Take care
Refuse video calls from strangers — that is how sextortion starts. Don't install apps that demand access to your contacts; that is how blackmailers get your contact list.
Related
blackmail · online-scam · stalking-emergency · personal-info-protection · crime-victim-support
Source
Korean National Police Agency cybercrime reporting ecrm.police.go.kr / As of 2026-08