r/Sextortion

I’m posting this from an account that isn't connected to my friends or people I know personally because I want to keep this completely private.

Today at noon 12.20, I was targeted by someone online. The conversation initially appeared normal, but the person eventually obtained private material from me and began threatening to share it with other people unless I paid money.

I was initially extremely frightened and made the mistake of engaging with the person because I was panicking. They repeatedly demanded money and tried to pressure me into paying. The amount wasn't something I was willing or realistically able to pay.

I eventually stopped negotiating and blocked the person. I did not send any money.

I preserved screenshots of the relevant threats and demands. I also had enough information about the account/contact to provide identifying details to the authorities.

I have now submitted an official cybercrime complaint through India's National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. I provided the evidence and identifying information I had available and received an acknowledgement for the complaint.

I'm not posting any screenshots because some of the evidence contains private material, and I don't want to redistribute it. I'm also deliberately leaving out names, usernames, emails phone numbers, locations, dates, and other identifying information.

What I'm struggling with now isn't really the reporting process. It's the anxiety afterward.

My brain keeps going through the same questions:

What if the person actually shares it?

What if someone I know sees it?

What if someone recognizes me?

What if it reaches people I know personally?

What if the person creates another account?

What if I should have done something differently?

What if I get another threatening message?

I understand intellectually that I can't know exactly what the person will do. But emotionally, my brain keeps treating every possible scenario as though it has already happened.

I've also realized that repeatedly checking accounts, thinking about possible leaks, rereading the threats, and imagining every possible outcome only makes the anxiety worse.

At this point, I've decided on a few rules for myself:

I won't pay.

I won't negotiate.

I won't contact the person.

I won't distribute the private material.

I won't keep checking obsessively.

If another threat arrives, I'll preserve the evidence and report it rather than engaging.

I'm mainly interested in hearing from people who have experienced something similar:

How did you deal with the anxiety after you had already reported the situation and taken the practical steps you could take?

I'm especially interested in advice about getting your mind out of the constant “what if?” loop and returning to normal life.

Please don't ask me to post the material or identifying information. I'm deliberately keeping those details private.

I'm also not looking for people to investigate the person involved. I've already reported the incident through the appropriate channel.

I would really appreciate practical advice from people who have been through something similar and eventually managed to stop thinking about it constantly.

Hi I’ve been a victim for a month and a half and I’ve made 2 payments out of pure fear of what could happen
But I finally mustered the courage to go to the police and after screenshotting evidence from telegram and sending it to them I’ve blocked it and will no longer text them back I have accepted that whatever he does he does. I’m just wondering how to deal with the stress that still comes along with it

Also one questions - the blackmailer liked to say that he enjoyed ruining people’s life and says he could end mine and stop me from getting any jobs in the future is that try is there actually a way he could stop me from getting any jobs in the future?

It just happened to me. But they're saying I sent pics to a 15 year old. They said they were 27, so that's the only part that's really bothering me. Should I treat this any differently? Or just ignore it?

Long story short someone got my iCloud password from a old data breach on one of my emails and managed to get all my info, I was sent blackmail by 11 different spam emails, all containing private videos of me I’ve never sent anyone I don’t trust, and all my contacts in my phone. I called to police before speaking to them about ransom demands and an hour later they sent out all the photos..🙁 Besides the investigation my local police will do (and not care about) what can i do? I’ve been trying to contact the fbi and everything but it’s not worth their time it seems

The sextortionist hasn’t contacted me in four and a half months. And I didn’t think about it really for the last three months or so. But since about a week, I am extremely anxious. The thought that he could contact or upload at any time sickens me, makes me feel always on guard and lives in my head rent free, making less room for other important things and stresses me so much that I do less of what I need and want to do. I need advice how to cope with it…

The worries that tormente us for a long time are also emotions that eventually passed by as time went by.

The things that weighed so heavily on our mind just a week ago that we couldn't sleep have now become faint memories and can no longer hold us back.

Worry always comes as if it will last forever, but no emotion stays for long.

So today as well, we all want to live choosing peace over anxiety and faith over worry.

May you guys never lose your heart, no matter what.

May our life always be peaceful.

I’m currently dealing with a sextortion situation and I’m honestly pretty stressed about it.
I was directed to a website that looked like Google Cloud storage. I believed it was legitimate and uploaded some intimate photos there.
Afterwards, a guy contacted me on Telegram. He actually has the photos, my phone number, and people from my Instagram. He is threatening to send the photos to people I know and/or distribute them if I don’t pay him.
I panicked and already sent him a few hundred euros worth of cryptocurrency through Revolut.
After receiving the payment, he demanded another couple hundred euros and continued threatening me. I have not paid anything else.
I have screenshots of the entire Telegram conversation, his threats, his account, the payment, and the information he showed me proving that he has access to the photos and my contacts.
I have already reported the crypto transaction to Revolut as fraud and explained that the payment was made as a result of sextortion. I have also contacted the police and reported the situation to them. I am reporting the Telegram account as well.
What scares me most is that this isn’t just an empty threat. He actually has the photos, my phone number and people from my Instagram.
I know paying was a mistake. I was panicking when I made the first payment, but I am not going to send him any more money.
For people who have experienced something similar:
What happened after you stopped paying when the sextortionist already had your photos and contacts? Did they actually send them to people, or did they eventually stop and move on?
I would really appreciate hearing from people who have been through something similar, especially if the offender already had access to their contacts.