In recent months, law enforcement in Manitoba has been raising the alarm on rapidly rising reports of sextortion. Equalling concerning is the fact that the victims are often children and youth.

The goal of the sextortion perpetrator is to gain power over their victim for the purpose of a monetary payout.

The pattern often begins with a social media friend request from someone posing as a young male peer. A relationship develops and trust is built. Eventually, the perpetrator solicits nude images from the victim which, when provided, become a tool for bribery. Failing to pay or send further images leads to threats about releasing the images to friends and family.

Sextortion can also occur within a domestic relationship where one person in the romantic partnership puts the other in an emotional hostage situation.

“Like other police agencies, Manitoba RCMP have noted an increase this decade in the number of reports of sextortion,” says RCMP Corporal Mèlanie Roussel. “This problem seems largely due to networks or pockets of bad actors, with offenders more often than not located in foreign countries, aiming to extort and exploit individuals for financial gain.”

According to the Winnipeg Police Service, they received 223 reports of extortion last year alone, the majority being complaints of sextortion. The number has been building year after year since 2020 when only 19 cases were reported.

Winnipeg-based Canadian Centre for Child Protection (CCCP) reports similar findings based on information left on cybertip.ca. According to the CCCP, the number of reported sextortion victims across Canada has gone from 458 in 2020 to a whopping 2,827 in 2025.

Considering the level of shame that arises from this kind of exploitation, it’s safe to assume that the number of actual victims far exceeds the reports. Other cases go unreported because victims are unaware of the resources and supports available to them.

For this reason, local law enforcers are working harder than ever to raise awareness and encourage people to get educated.

Why So Many Fall Victim

According to a spokesperson for the CCCP, much responsibility for the sextortion epidemic belongs to the prevalence of the internet in kids’ lives and the heavy use of Snapchat, Instagram, and Discord, or gaming platforms such as Roblox. These platforms have few guardrails to keep kids safe from predators.

But why do so many young victims fall prey to requests for intimate image sharing? That’s another question altogether.

Meagan Walker, former executive director of the London Abused Women’s Centre, says that her decades of experience helping exploited women and girls provides some answers.

“In a culture saturated with pornography, women and girls are pressured to conform to a hypersexualized image to gain attention or risk becoming invisible,” Walker said at last month’s Joy Smith Foundation annual gala. “And being invisible, to a young person or a child, is the very worst thing that can happen to them. The pressure to fit into our society means you have to do whatever you can to be popular.”

This societal framework, she says, sets the stage for perpetrators of sexploitation.

“[Perpetrators] don’t need anyone to do the work for them,” Walker adds. “Society does it for them.”

Reporting and Prevention

First and foremost, the key to getting help when you’ve been victimized is recognizing that you’re not alone. Then it’s imperative to report your situation to authorities so the criminals can be stopped before they have a chance to victimize others.

For minors, the RCMP can take statements and provide support without parental involvement.

“You are in control, as the victim and police will only do what you are comfortable with,” reads a statement on the RCMP website. “They can get you set up with emotional supports, and they can help you try and get your images deleted from the internet.”

As well, victims can call Crime Stoppers anonymously and report incidents to cybertip.ca.

It’s important to immediately block a suspected perpetrator by locking down your social media accounts. Don’t accept any new friends. Be sure to save any communications you’ve had with the extortionist as well as images you sent them.

There are signs to watch for if you’re unsure whether someone should be avoided online. Check the length of their friend list and how long they’ve had the profile. If it’s new, the RCMP say, it’s a scam.

Do their photos lack a variety of candid shots in different settings? Run a reverse Google image search to see if theirs are stock photos or have been stolen from someone else’s profile.

If they make excuses to avoid a video chat, it could be a red flag. You might ask them to send a photo of themselves holding up a paper with a codeword of your choosing.

Of course, the safest bet is to avoid sending nude images of yourself to anyone. Unless you’re in a relationship with someone you’re confident is trustworthy, don’t allow them to take nude photos of you.

As a parent, your best line of defence is to have these conversations with your child on an ongoing basis. Also, make sure to monitor their internet use and ask questions about their online friends.

It’s also important to be aware that, under Canadian law, even minors can face legal consequences if they possess intimate images of other minors, regardless of consent. The same is true of anyone owning a device—like a parent, for example—where intimate images of a minor are being received or sent.