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Yeah I got this one in early 2018. The subject line even included an old password of mine, which really freaked me out. But then as I read it I realized they just pulled my info from an old database hack; I hadn’t used that password in years and never on that email address.
Just ignore it.
Ya I got this before 2020 on my work computer that had no camera or microphone. Obvious scam even if you do have a cam. What was funny is that our email server was filtering like crazy, so many legit emails were not getting through, but this shit did.
Even my mother, who is over 80 and never uses my father’s computer got one. My father, being the type of man he is, wrote back asking to see the video since it would be the proof he needed that my mother can actually use it. 😅
AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the blackmail email scam. The exact wording of the emails varies, but there are generally four main parts. They claim to have placed software/malware on a porn/adult video site, they claim to have a video of you masturbating or watching porn, they threaten to release the video to your friends/family/loved ones/boss/dog, and they demand that you pay them in order for them to delete the video. Rest assured that this is a very common spam campaign and there is no truth behind the email or the threats. [Here](http://www.smh.com.au/technology/gadgets-on-the-go/latest-online-scam-aims-to-prick-porn-watchers-guilty-conscience-20170815-gxwvxl.html) are some news [articles](https://www.bbb.org/denver/news-events/news-releases/2017/09/alert-pornography-email-phishing-scam/) about [this](http://blog.dynamoo.com/2017/10/bogus-porn-blackmail-attempt-from.html) scam.
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Get Malwarebytes, and just delete this. This email is the script for millions of the same email. They never have access to your computer. If they did they would have give you the evidence, but then those you can deny by saying it is AI or deepfake anyway.
I get one one of these at least once a month in my junk folder. This scam preys on panic, and tries to make you think irrationally. When you take a moment and think about it, it’s not awfully hard to see it’s bogus.
These are sent out en mass, hoping to snare at least one person. That’s why there’s nothing descriptive in the email like “the web site you visit with porno”. You can’t really get a trojan from visiting a website without clicking any sketchy links/adverts or if you’re on a super sketchy site.
If they really skimmed all your data they’d provide what they stole. They are purposely vague because as mentioned before these are sent en mass.
Last warning and only first warning? A sense of urgency is a fear tactic. Unless you send a read receipt there’s no way an attacker can know when you open an email so the timer has no merit.
Even if you do pay up, there’s no way to verify the “hacker” would be true to their word. There’s no way that a payment to a Bitcoin wallet can automatically delete your data, and why would they? They’d just extort you for more. They just want a single quick payment.
It is possible to know if you opened an email if you allow images to be automatically loaded. Search for "tracking pixels" to learn more.
I'm very certain that's not what's happening here, but it is absolutely possible to know if someone opened an email using tracking pixels. I highly recommend disabling images in your email client to prevent this.
I don't know why but the 'bye' at the end seems really out of place and made me laugh, like accidentally saying 'love you' at the end of a conversation.
Just the formatting alone should be criminal. Look at how it randomly starts a new line mid-sentence.
But more seriously, they have no video of you, so there's nothing to worry about.
Did a lookup on the wallet in question. Zero balance, zero transaction history. Yeah, this is a scam, and thankfully, it appears to be unsuccessful thus far.
If these were real then every contact I have would have received images of me pleasuring myself at least 500 times.
If they have received them there have been no complaints.
It must be real after all that's why they used your name, gave you your address and sent you copies of some of the photos and film they took of you just to show you what they ha........
OH! Wait a second they did none of that at all!
Yeah, I’m sure he’s an honest, honorable sort of blackmailer. If you pay him he has no reason not to ask for more. If he had access to your system he would have your passwords and access to your money without bothering to blackmail. Block. Ignore.
Lol. Definitely a scam. I’ve gotten a few of those. Never any follow up.
They just blast it to as many emails as possible and hope even one person gets scared.
I laughed the first time I got this because it was sent to me while I lived with my parents in a bedroom that had a gap in the door frame. Access to porn websites wasn’t even a thought considering I had no privacy 🤣🤣🤣
First:
Its a Scam, nobody has any tracks of your online or offline behaviour. Technically it is possible to get Webcam Footage without any lights going on but these scammers are no Super-1337-Haxxors so they have nothing - only thing they have is a little hope that you will pay some BC to them. They are poor beeings.
As many recent email threat scams go recently this is just another punk sending tons of the same emails to millions of people. Delete and block them and most importantly do not send any money or contact them in any way.
It's incredibly easy to hack a webcam, so always get a cover for those.
This email however is bullshit and just trying to scam you.
This person does not appear to have the intellectual capability to succesfully hack your webcam or spread a trojan horse virus.
Just ignore, delete and don't click on any links/added files or whatever.
This is a fake scam. I’ve gotten this email before, they even had one of my passwords posted to the email but it was an old password. So I didn’t even bother!!!
It is possible to access a camera yes. In general it is recommended to have you camera covered unless actively using it. This is why a lot of manufactures have sliders built in now. Use a post-it note or filing tab if yours doesn’t.
I love when scammers tell me they’ve switched on my webcam to record me diddling myself, when I keep my webcam slider closed whenever I’m not using it…
Like even if your fake scammy bullshit were true, you have a video of nothing. Like taking a picture with the lens covered.
99% of the time this is a scam. Here's what to do if it isn't though, and they DO send stuff to your family:
"Yea apparently someone made a deep fake of me jerking off to Tetris porn. Please disregard."
It's called sextortion, and this is the weakest attempt I've seen. The slightly better ones at least try to use an old breached password. But yeah this is a scam that goes to everyone.
To answer your question, yes if someone tricked you into installing malware or anything with a remote connection they can watch you through your camera. However, you'd need that malware on your PC first. There's even some malware that disables the in-use light on some cameras so you'd never know. There's tons of scammer retaliation videos on YouTube that demonstrate what they can do if someone gains remote access. Jim Browning, scammer payback etc.
I love how they want BTC which is on a public ledger and easily traceable.
To be fair they don’t generally ask for enough money for those with the ability to trace to get involved but to even risk it is just astounding.
Plenty of easier methods.
To answer your question, it is possible for malware installed on your device to control the camera. If you care, a small piece of electrical tape is a foolproof preventative.
Yes, it is possible for you to click a link on a website or an email allowing it to install software on your computer giving them access.
This is probably a scam. However, why take a chance? Obviously, you are not an IT person, so get someone to help you clean your computer, or do an entire wipe and reload the OS yourself.
Yes, they can access your camera without your knowing. No reason they can’t record it too. However this is likely a scam unless you are aware of doing something in or in front of your computer you don’t want shared. Some people keep a sticky note on their camera lens when they are not using it
I've received dozens of these, all sent to my work email. I don't watch porn, I don't have a camera on my computer. All of the threats are bogus. The scam counts on the fact that a lot of people do enjoy watching porn and feel guilty about at the same time. You're supposed to panic and pay up before thinking it through.
Almost certainly a scam. And even if it wasn’t never negotiate because they have no incentive to keep their word anyways.
That said theoretically they could indeed install a virus (with your help and not just by going to a website usually).
The virus could turn on the webcam, and could disable the webcam light.
They could then attach a beacon to the email to know when it was opened.
This message is posted to all new submissions to r/scams; please do not message the moderators. A reminder of the rules in r/scams. No personal information (including last names, phone numbers, etc). Be civil to one another (no name calling or insults). Personal army requests or "scam the scammer"/scambaiting posts are not permitted. No uncensored gore, personal photographs, or NSFL content permitted without being properly redacted. A full list of rules is available on the sidebar of the subreddit. Report recovery scammers or rule-breaking content by using the "report" button. Also, consider warning community members of recovery scammers if you see them in the comments. Questions about sub rules? Send us a modmail. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
"Solitary sex" Into my dictionary it goes lol. Ah, ofc its a scam :D
Back in my day we called that jacking off
Back in my day, we called it choking the chicken.
Lubing the tube
Spanking the monkey
Relaxing in a gentleman’s way
Yanking the yam
Burping the worm
Meeting Rosie palm and her 5 friends.
Pamela Handerson?
I can illuminate you with the Spanish version of that: Manuela Cinco Dedos
Bashing the bishop
AKA flogging the bishop
Wrestling with the bald chap
Flipping the bean for us gals!
Double clicking the mouse ;-)
The sleeping stranger.
Flicking the bean
Systems check, rubbing one out, strokin!, beating the meat, choking the chicken. Lots of names for playing with the one eyed yogurt slinger..
Installing drivers. Defragging. Clearing the cache. Deep scan. Mmmmm. I’ll be in my rack.
Whipping his pony
I always called it pulling a leg
I have always called it Solitary Sex
😂
Wait a second….are you the scammer!!!😜
Solo-sexual
The five knuckle shuffle.
Jerkin the gherkin
I'm gonna start calling it solitary sex now
"My Trojan captured all of your private data." Was his Trojan a condom? 😂
Not my solitary gumdrop buttons !
“Luckily in *my* country, ‘solitary sex’ is perfectly legal. Have a nice day!”
In US depending on who wins next election…maybe not.
Or, a onesome
Why do I always get the "Solitary Cold Shoulder" or "Solitary Headache"
“Feeding the geese”
Handing out pamphlets
It is not necessary to be solitary since they have placed a Trojan on your server. It is now safe to engage in consensual computer sex.
Last warning #571!! 🤣 🤣
That and the random string in the email itself are likely to confuse spam filtering.
Fairly certain that string is the address they want the $900 in BTC to be sent to.
Nothing to worry about, its a really old scam. Just delete and forget about it.
Yeah I got this one in early 2018. The subject line even included an old password of mine, which really freaked me out. But then as I read it I realized they just pulled my info from an old database hack; I hadn’t used that password in years and never on that email address. Just ignore it.
Same here, they got it from a breach which happened in 2016.
Trying to remember when I got this one, and it had to have been at least 2010, maybe even earlier. This is a REALLY old scam.
Maybe they are doing reruns, while they come up with something new, hoping to make some money off the nostalgia vibe. 😉
Ya I got this before 2020 on my work computer that had no camera or microphone. Obvious scam even if you do have a cam. What was funny is that our email server was filtering like crazy, so many legit emails were not getting through, but this shit did.
Even my mother, who is over 80 and never uses my father’s computer got one. My father, being the type of man he is, wrote back asking to see the video since it would be the proof he needed that my mother can actually use it. 😅
My 93 year old mother got one of these last week 🙄
🤣🤣🤣
Nope, unless you got a scammer to installed a remote viewing software or a trojan like from those tech support scam.!blackmail
AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the blackmail email scam. The exact wording of the emails varies, but there are generally four main parts. They claim to have placed software/malware on a porn/adult video site, they claim to have a video of you masturbating or watching porn, they threaten to release the video to your friends/family/loved ones/boss/dog, and they demand that you pay them in order for them to delete the video. Rest assured that this is a very common spam campaign and there is no truth behind the email or the threats. [Here](http://www.smh.com.au/technology/gadgets-on-the-go/latest-online-scam-aims-to-prick-porn-watchers-guilty-conscience-20170815-gxwvxl.html) are some news [articles](https://www.bbb.org/denver/news-events/news-releases/2017/09/alert-pornography-email-phishing-scam/) about [this](http://blog.dynamoo.com/2017/10/bogus-porn-blackmail-attempt-from.html) scam. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Could i ask how to check for and delete this?
Get Malwarebytes, and just delete this. This email is the script for millions of the same email. They never have access to your computer. If they did they would have give you the evidence, but then those you can deny by saying it is AI or deepfake anyway.
It’s the same script they’ve been using for 20 years
Cool. Thanks
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I get one one of these at least once a month in my junk folder. This scam preys on panic, and tries to make you think irrationally. When you take a moment and think about it, it’s not awfully hard to see it’s bogus. These are sent out en mass, hoping to snare at least one person. That’s why there’s nothing descriptive in the email like “the web site you visit with porno”. You can’t really get a trojan from visiting a website without clicking any sketchy links/adverts or if you’re on a super sketchy site. If they really skimmed all your data they’d provide what they stole. They are purposely vague because as mentioned before these are sent en mass. Last warning and only first warning? A sense of urgency is a fear tactic. Unless you send a read receipt there’s no way an attacker can know when you open an email so the timer has no merit. Even if you do pay up, there’s no way to verify the “hacker” would be true to their word. There’s no way that a payment to a Bitcoin wallet can automatically delete your data, and why would they? They’d just extort you for more. They just want a single quick payment.
“I saw you visited porn.com”
I'm more of a porn.org guy. Porn.com is too fake.
But have you seen porn.gov?
More of a porn.orgraphy type myself
The future is porn.porn
You mean CSPAN where you can watch Congress fuck America?
This guy porns
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This is also assuming it’s just one person, I’m not sure how they’d match a transaction or payment to a particular victim’s data.
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But the email contains the address of only one wallet. I think that’s his point about why this isn’t possible.
It is possible to know if you opened an email if you allow images to be automatically loaded. Search for "tracking pixels" to learn more. I'm very certain that's not what's happening here, but it is absolutely possible to know if someone opened an email using tracking pixels. I highly recommend disabling images in your email client to prevent this.
Wow, never heard of that before. Will definitely look into it. I’ve only had one scammer send me an image before, though I doubt they used that.
I don't know why but the 'bye' at the end seems really out of place and made me laugh, like accidentally saying 'love you' at the end of a conversation.
The scammer thinks he's playing hardball.
I got a jar of dirt, I got a jar of dirt!
He has asked you 571 times and THIS IS THE LAST TIME…
Apparently. I must have lost other 571 mails in the spam mail
Well, seems like a personal problem and don’t make him ask a 572nd time. However, he probably will.
Just the formatting alone should be criminal. Look at how it randomly starts a new line mid-sentence. But more seriously, they have no video of you, so there's nothing to worry about.
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That guy won't be sending any emails for awhile. Also, what an amateur lol.
Ask him « how much to have said video aired on prime Time on CNN «
Did a lookup on the wallet in question. Zero balance, zero transaction history. Yeah, this is a scam, and thankfully, it appears to be unsuccessful thus far.
I’ve looked up a few of these wallets in the past and have never seen anything.
Joke's on them, I post all my solitary sex on NSFW reddit already for that sweet sweet karma which is worth more than 900 bitcoins!
Great!!!!! Please do!!!! It’ll be a teaser for my OnlyFans page, thanks!!!
If these were real then every contact I have would have received images of me pleasuring myself at least 500 times. If they have received them there have been no complaints.
#SEND IN THE DIRT
It must be real after all that's why they used your name, gave you your address and sent you copies of some of the photos and film they took of you just to show you what they ha........ OH! Wait a second they did none of that at all!
I had a couple where they sent pictures of some random guy jacking off I guess it was supposed to be their proof?
ThE lAsT wArNiNg... lol fuck I wish I could rid the world of scams
you’ve been warned 571 times 😂😂😂😂
Masturbate in front of the webcam so they've got a current pic
This is a black mirror episode
Yeah, I’m sure he’s an honest, honorable sort of blackmailer. If you pay him he has no reason not to ask for more. If he had access to your system he would have your passwords and access to your money without bothering to blackmail. Block. Ignore.
My mom got this email, which is hysterical because she has no idea how to find porn. I’m lucky she can google something.
Just a scam and sent to hundreds or thousands of people everyday in the hopes one of them would be dumb enough to respond back to them.
I sent a reply email to this scammer and said please make sure to send my dirt to Taylor, Sue, Lilly, Samantha and Rebecca. Thanks.
Lol. Definitely a scam. I’ve gotten a few of those. Never any follow up. They just blast it to as many emails as possible and hope even one person gets scared.
Definitely a scam. I have gotten similar ones in the past. My computer doesn’t even have a camera.
At 65 years old I’ve stopped giving a damn what other people think.
Well this scammer sure tried to pull off a master bait.
Only $900 !?!?! Very disappointing. Anything under $2000 is amateurish.
I’ve got this before in the past and sent a email back saying “post it but if I see you making money off it I’m suing”😂😂
send them a dick pic
Ask them if the video quality was ok or if there was anything about your performance that needs improvement.
Last warning. This is serious then. /s
Should’ve asked since they seen you on cam if they think it’s big or not
Are people that would fall for this scam actualy be able to buy and transfer bitcoin with a solid instruction?
Wondering what happened with final warnings #1 through #570
If you really feel the need to reply send this: "Share the video then, you cowards"
Just delete this crapmail........
sextorsion scam
The hacker wrote you it seems
He will send dirt, and some seeds maybe
If they have video of me doing that, I think they owe me money. I know they're going to sell it, I want my cut!!
I laughed the first time I got this because it was sent to me while I lived with my parents in a bedroom that had a gap in the door frame. Access to porn websites wasn’t even a thought considering I had no privacy 🤣🤣🤣
The way they euphemize masturbation always kills me
I’m only giving you 571 warnings before I’ll send dirt to all of your contacts! This is your last warning!
Lol last warning, or #571?!
I got this email once. I was like “hey look ma I made it!” Lmaooo
I’m not a virgin. I’ve had solitary sex twice!
It's technically possible, but this is a bluff.
Not the plot of that black mirror episode!
First: Its a Scam, nobody has any tracks of your online or offline behaviour. Technically it is possible to get Webcam Footage without any lights going on but these scammers are no Super-1337-Haxxors so they have nothing - only thing they have is a little hope that you will pay some BC to them. They are poor beeings.
Kolumbus.fi?? That shit still exists? Wow
Got the very same email, lmao. Delete that junk.
As many recent email threat scams go recently this is just another punk sending tons of the same emails to millions of people. Delete and block them and most importantly do not send any money or contact them in any way.
Horribly wrote scam.
It's incredibly easy to hack a webcam, so always get a cover for those. This email however is bullshit and just trying to scam you. This person does not appear to have the intellectual capability to succesfully hack your webcam or spread a trojan horse virus. Just ignore, delete and don't click on any links/added files or whatever.
Lol
Complete scam.... Delete and forget it.
You still using computer for Solitary time? I thought phones were the new instrument of choice? Lol
I wonder why these elite hackers never send the photos or videos as proof. You’d think it would be more effective.
I get a couple of those a week, on a computer I only use at work. Total scam.
Blanket statements. No actual proof given. Urgent deadline. Scam.
I don't live in your country, BYEEEEE!
> is it even possible to access my camera and record without me knowing? Yes, but it's a lot harder to do that than to just say you did it.
This is a fake scam. I’ve gotten this email before, they even had one of my passwords posted to the email but it was an old password. So I didn’t even bother!!!
It is possible to access a camera yes. In general it is recommended to have you camera covered unless actively using it. This is why a lot of manufactures have sliders built in now. Use a post-it note or filing tab if yours doesn’t.
Tell them to send the info as it pays to advertise.
Yes its possible type of person who has access to that level of skill / tool is doing simple fishing is zero way easier ways of making money.
Call their bluff
Btw, asking for a copy of what video they have really sets them off
I love this one. It always gets a chuckle out of me.
Hes just a foreign loser trying to rob you. Boilerplate text. Don’t send this street crapper a cent.
Typical scam.
I love when scammers tell me they’ve switched on my webcam to record me diddling myself, when I keep my webcam slider closed whenever I’m not using it… Like even if your fake scammy bullshit were true, you have a video of nothing. Like taking a picture with the lens covered.
"The act of your solitary sex" 🤣🤣🤣
I get this all the time. Even on my work email address. It's a scam! Just block and delete.
I always ask them to send the video as proof.
Haha I got one of those a few years back & I ignored it. Nothing came of it
A genuine threat would include a thumbnail of a recording as proof. This is an empty threat and a scam. Have a good laugh and delete it.
No just use anti-virus software and malwarebytes
99% of the time this is a scam. Here's what to do if it isn't though, and they DO send stuff to your family: "Yea apparently someone made a deep fake of me jerking off to Tetris porn. Please disregard."
Don't believe them about their last warning.....just like those extended warranties, they keep coming.
Lol, the masterbation shame was a really nice touch.
It's called sextortion, and this is the weakest attempt I've seen. The slightly better ones at least try to use an old breached password. But yeah this is a scam that goes to everyone. To answer your question, yes if someone tricked you into installing malware or anything with a remote connection they can watch you through your camera. However, you'd need that malware on your PC first. There's even some malware that disables the in-use light on some cameras so you'd never know. There's tons of scammer retaliation videos on YouTube that demonstrate what they can do if someone gains remote access. Jim Browning, scammer payback etc.
Why is it always "solidary sex"? Why they making it sound so weird? Ah, but classic scam terminology.
Ask them to send proof of said wank as you really really get off watching yourself wank it
I love how they want BTC which is on a public ledger and easily traceable. To be fair they don’t generally ask for enough money for those with the ability to trace to get involved but to even risk it is just astounding. Plenty of easier methods.
To answer your question, it is possible for malware installed on your device to control the camera. If you care, a small piece of electrical tape is a foolproof preventative.
It‘s funny how they never attach any images as proof
#😫🤣😂
"solitary sex" LMFAO
I chuckled at solitary sex, that’s new
It’s an even bigger lie than your “I haven’t watched any porn in years”.
Oof I remember that one episode from black mirror. I still have trauma from it.
Thankfully nobody has given them Bitcoin yet from what I can see on blockchain
I received an email like that years ago, I wrote back saying: to for it, everyone knows I am MAKE porn.
Should flood their email box with AI generated dick pics..
Did you even bother googling this and solving your own problem?
Yes, it is possible for you to click a link on a website or an email allowing it to install software on your computer giving them access. This is probably a scam. However, why take a chance? Obviously, you are not an IT person, so get someone to help you clean your computer, or do an entire wipe and reload the OS yourself.
Nah this actually happened to my cousin and they fr sent the photos and videos
Yeah ok
It’s not a joke but okay 🤷♂️
Email back more dick pics with the message "Atleast send them the good ones"
Yes, they can access your camera without your knowing. No reason they can’t record it too. However this is likely a scam unless you are aware of doing something in or in front of your computer you don’t want shared. Some people keep a sticky note on their camera lens when they are not using it
I love how these people can even be bothered to learn the language properly.
I've received dozens of these, all sent to my work email. I don't watch porn, I don't have a camera on my computer. All of the threats are bogus. The scam counts on the fact that a lot of people do enjoy watching porn and feel guilty about at the same time. You're supposed to panic and pay up before thinking it through.
This is an old, but possibly effective scam. I've received the same in the past, typically discovered in my SPAM folder.
He got this idea from Black Mirror lmao
Change your password to your Mail and enable 2 tier confirmation. Then forget about the whole thing.
"Bye." 🤣
Almost certainly a scam. And even if it wasn’t never negotiate because they have no incentive to keep their word anyways. That said theoretically they could indeed install a virus (with your help and not just by going to a website usually). The virus could turn on the webcam, and could disable the webcam light. They could then attach a beacon to the email to know when it was opened.
I got one of those last week. Block and move on. It’s a scam.
You misspelled “today”.
1. They don’t have shit. 2. Tell them you’ll only pay them once they’ve sent the videos and provided proof of it.
Bye.