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Extortion scam emails

What is extortion scam email?

It is a type of online scam, where scammers claim to hack a victim's device and threaten to distribute their private and sensitive materials and demand a payment as a ransom.

How do extortion email scams work?

Cybercriminals use various scam emails with different content, but share these common traits when attempting to scam and extort money.

  • Email subject line contains the victim's real name, phone number, or an old password.

  • Spoof recipient's email addresses - scam emails coming from the recipient's own account

  • Claiming to have hacked the user's device and installed malware to access their webcam and film the user while the websites are visited.

  • Threatening to release the video of a user to his/her contacts unless the victim pays a specific bitcoin amount.

How do scammers know a user's password?

The scammers behind extortion attempts are using lists of usernames, passwords, and other personal details that may have been compromised and collected in one of the numerous data leaks that have occurred to major online services.

If scammers have my password, does it mean my antivirus failed?

No, it does not. While it is possible for a cybercriminal to obtain your password by compromising your device (this is why a good antivirus protection is so important!), a cybercriminal may also obtain one of your passwords from a breach of a third-party website or online service where you used that password.

What to do if you get the extortion scam email?

  • Do not respond or send any payments to the scammer.

  • Change your passwords immediately. This goes for email and all accounts, including bank accounts and PIN numbers. Create strong, complicated, new passwords that feature a confusing slew of numbers and symbols.

  • Run a Full Scan for viruses and unknown threats on your computer.

  • (US customers only) Find out if your personal information has been compromised.

    LifeLock offers a free breach detection tool which you can use to find out if your personal information has been compromised. You may access it here: https://www.lifelock.com/breach-detection. We also offer tools to help to monitor1 and protect your personal information.

How to submit a suspicious email to Norton?

You can report a spam or scam email that you receive to Norton. For more information, read Report a spam or scam email to Norton.

What to do when you fall for an email scam?

Falling for an email scam is something that can happen to anyone. It's a frightening concept and one that frequently results in undiluted panic.

Follow the instructions that are mentioned in this link: https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-online-scams-what-to-do-when-you-fall-for-an-email-scam.html

No one can prevent all identity theft or cybercrime.

1LifeLock does not monitor all transactions at all businesses.

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DOCID: v131199322
Operating System: Android;Mac;Windows;iOS
Last modified: 09/14/2023