Sam
Sam is 16 and scrolls Instagram every night before bed.
One evening, he reacts with a love heart to a story posted by someone called Jessica, who regularly shares cute, flirty content. Jessica replies almost immediately:
‘Hey handsome, how are u?
What r u up 2’
Sam says he’s about to go to sleep because he has an exam the next day.
Jessica says she’s bored and suggests they ‘have a bit of fun’.
Sam feels unsure but curious. When he hesitates, Jessica reassures him that it will be ‘just between us’. She suggests they both share private pictures and move their chat to WhatsApp.
Once they move to WhatsApp, Jessica sends repeated messages asking Sam to send her a nude, insisting his face must be in the photo. When he says he’s uncomfortable, she reassures him he has nothing to worry about and that she would never share it.
Feeling nervous but not wanting to disappoint her, Sam sends a nude picture.
Within seconds, everything changes.
Jessica sends a message saying she’s about to ruin his life. She will share the image with his friends unless he pays her $200 and then texts:
‘Hey bro. Pay me 😡🤬😡🤬😡🤬
Fast payment’
Sam panics. He texts her that he doesn’t have the money.
Jessica tells him to find a way. She threatens that if he blocks her, deletes the chat or takes too long to respond, she will send the image to everyone he knows.
She tells him to find some cash, even steal it from his parents if he has to, and then buy a gift card and send her the code.
He replies he knows his dad has a $100 Apple Gift Card from his birthday. Jessica orders him to use that as payment.
He explains that he’d need to get it from his dad’s wallet but he can’t do that till the morning. He begs for a bit more time. Jessica replies:
‘How long? 🤬😡🤬’
He texts that he’ll do it in the morning. ‘Just please don’t send it,’ he begs. Jessica says:
‘Go to sleep and get me the card in the morning
U know I can ruin ur life’
The next morning, Sam wakes up to more messages:
‘Wake up
U know I can spread ur nudes’
Sam is relieved to find his parents are awake and distracted, and he can get to the gift card without being noticed. He quickly sends Jessica the details of the gift card. He then turns off his phone, terrified that she will keep sending more threats.
That day at school, Sam can barely concentrate. He’s scared his friends will see the images and, even worse, that he could be expelled.
One of his teachers notices something is wrong. While Sam doesn’t tell her what’s upset him, she makes a point of contacting his parents to let them know he really wasn’t himself.
What Sam and his parents want others to know
After opening up to his parents about what happened, Sam learns this is a form of blackmail called ‘sexual extortion’, or ‘sextortion’. Since Sam is under 18 years of age, it’s also a type of online child sexual abuse and can be reported to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE).
Sam and his parents want other children to know:
- This is not your fault. You are a victim of crime.
- Talk to a trusted adult as soon as possible: a parent, older sibling, teacher or counsellor.
- Do not pay the blackmailer.
- Do not send more intimate images.
- Do not engage further.
- Save evidence to include with your report.
- Report the account on the platform where contact was made and then block all contact. You can find advice on reporting abuse directly to social media platforms in The eSafety Guide.
Find more information on how to manage the impacts of sextortion and other forms of image-based abuse.
*Sam’s story combines the experiences and emotions of a number of individuals in this situation. Commissioned photo. Posed by model.
Get support
Learn more and connect with support. There are also a number of ways you can take action to remove and report intimate images if you have experienced image-based abuse or 'revenge porn'.
Daniel's story
Last updated: 21/05/2026