A TEENAGER was blackmailed out of £800 after being conned into doing explicit things during a webcam chat with a stranger.

Jacob*, 16, from Somerset, is telling his story to warn others of the devastating psychologically effect of falling victim to sextortion.

He said he was bored in his bedroom one evening over the Christmas holidays and went online to chat to a 'girl' he didn't know.

The mystery 'girl' talked him into doing explicit things and persuaded him to pass on his mobile number.

Once they began messaging, Jacob was sent a link to an explicit video of himself, which appeared to have been recorded through his webcam.

Then he was called by a man.

Jacob said: "The guy was so aggressive on the phone. He said he was a pro hacker.

"He sent me a list of all my Facebook friends and said, ‘I will ruin your life’.

"My heart was beating out of my chest. I was shaking. I remember looking at myself in my bedroom mirror thinking, ‘What have I done, what have I done?'

"I went into panic mode and kept thinking about the worst case scenario - all my friends and family and people at school seeing the video and looking at me differently.

"I just wanted to stop it. I asked him what he wanted.

“I didn’t care about the money. All I could think about was trying to prevent that video getting out.

"I could earn the money back, but I didn’t think I could get my reputation back as easily.

"You hear about this stuff happening but there’s nothing that can prepare you for it. It felt like he was in total control.”

Jacob transferred £800 to the man and then shouted for his older sister, who was downstairs.

He said: "I thought, no matter what happens, I’m going to have to tell my family about this at some point, so I may as well tell them now.”

Jacob’s sister called the police and their parents, asking them to come home immediately.

His mum said: “I just walked in and gave him a big hug.

"We did everything we could - closing down his social media accounts, changing his phone number, and we gave him a stern talking to.

"But he’s suffered enough for his mistake and he’s now working hard to earn that money back.”

Forces across the UK have received more than 2,000 reports of sextortion in the last two years, but many cases will go unreported.

Joanne Bocko, cyber protect officer for Avon and Somerset Police, said: “What happened to Jacob is called sextortion. It’s where someone uses a sexually explicit image or video of their victim as leverage to blackmail them and to make demands.

"This kind of criminal preys on people’s vulnerabilities. It’s a very cruel crime which can ruin people’s lives.

"That’s why for us, protection and the welfare of the victim is paramount.

“To prevent this kind of thing happening in the first place, we’d advise not going on webcam with a stranger or giving personal details to someone you don’t know - such as your full name, telephone number or e-mail address.

"And, while we see victims of all ages and genders, in many cases reported to us the victims are men aged 18 to 29.

"So if you have relatives or friends in this age group, why not tell them about Jacob’s story and warn them of the dangers?”

Police have issued the following advice for anyone who has fallen victim to sextortion:

  • Don’t panic. You’re the victim in this and you’ll need support to help you through this difficult time, so call police immediately on 101 – they’ll deal with it in confidence and won’t make any judgements on your behaviour;
  • Don’t pay. Even if you give money to the person making demands, there may be continued requests for larger amounts of money. This money will then likely be used to fund the organised crime groups who commit these types of crimes;
  • Don’t communicate any further with the offender. Get screen shots of communication and keep any evidence which could help police with their investigation. They can help with more specific advice over the phone, once you’ve reported it.

*The victim’s name has been changed to protect his identity.

Sextortion victims are advised to call police on 101.