Frequently Asked Questions

• Q.

  They are blackmailing me, saying they will spread the photos.

  A.

  A. Blackmail is a criminal act intended to make the other person do what you say by speaking or acting frighteningly toward them. The perpetrator thinks the other person will listen to them well if they are scared, so they intentionally threaten them with the most terrifying words.

  For example,

  • “What will you do if your parents find out?”

  • “Should I spread this photo to your friends or school?”

  • “I’m going to report you to the police!”

  Hearing these words makes you feel scared and anxious. Because of this, you might try to persuade the other person through conversation, or give in to the perpetrator's demands thinking, ‘If I just do this one time, it will end, right?’ You might feel scared right now, but once the perpetrator's blackmailing begins, you must stop the conversation immediately.

  • 1

    You must not give in to the perpetrator's demands!!

    Once you give in to their demands, perpetrators will continuously demand more and raise the level of blackmail to keep harassing you, so it is important not to comply with the perpetrator's demands.

  • 2

    Take a deep breath.

    If you are blackmailed, you might be startled and feel like your heart is pounding or you are out of breath. When that happens, first, try taking slow, deep breaths. Then, gently pat your chest and tell yourself, “It's okay, I can handle this well enough.” After calming down a little like this, calmly following the methods outlined below one by one will be helpful.

  • 3

    Secure evidence of the perpetrator's blackmail.

    You must not delete messages such as text messages, KakaoTalk, or Instagram DMs sent by the perpetrator, but keep them as they are. If you are too scared and have to leave the chat room, take screenshots of the message contents so that the date and time are visible before you leave. After submitting the evidence to the police, leave the chat room and block the perpetrator.

  • 4

    Block messages sent by the perpetrator.

    Most of the perpetrator's messages are full of provocative and threatening words, so every time you read them, your fear grows, and you feel anxious that such things might actually happen. In those moments, you might get momentarily scared and unconsciously give in to the perpetrator's demands. Therefore, the best method when receiving blackmail messages is to block the perpetrator immediately without reading the messages. Turning off message notifications or switching your phone to airplane mode is also very helpful.

  • 5

    Change or delete personal information given to the perpetrator.

    If there are social media accounts or IDs you have given to the perpetrator, change your personal information or delete the accounts so they cannot contact you again.

  • 6

    You can report the blackmailing perpetrator to the police.

    A police report is not mandatory, but it may be absolutely necessary to prevent further harm. Do not worry alone, and make sure to consult with adults and receive help safely; this is the most important thing.

    If you report it to the police, through the investigation process,

    • You can stop the perpetrator's blackmailing.

    • You can delete the photos and videos the perpetrator possesses.

• Q.

  They listened to my worries and were a good person, are they really a perpetrator?

  A.

  Perpetrators approach normally and say the things you like and want to hear, so they don't look like bad people from the start. When it's not easy to figure out if it's a crime just from conversations in online spaces, you can tell through the methods below.

  • 

    Perpetrators make you feel ‘these kinds of feelings’.

    • After approaching intimately, perpetrators create a situation where it seems like you have become special (secret friends, romantic relationship, etc.). By making the other person perceive them as a good person, they make the victim easily trust and rely on them.

    • The perpetrator gifts drink coupons, emoticons, game items, pocket money, etc., and later uses these gifts to create a sense of obligation (feeling sorry, guilty, etc.) when making sexual demands, making it difficult to refuse and causing the victim to send photos or videos of themselves.

    • Perpetrators continuously demand sexual photos or videos, and if refused, they blackmail the victim by threatening to share personal information, conversation contents, photos, secrets, etc. with friends or parents, making them feel afraid and scared.

  • 

    Perpetrators make you do ‘these kinds of actions’.

    • Claiming they want to know more about the other person, perpetrators make them reveal personal information such as name, school, address, and contact information.

    • Showing interest and saying they like you, perpetrators say things that stimulate sexual curiosity and induce you to engage in sexual conversations and send body photos.

    • Under the pretext of sharing daily life, perpetrators exchange trivial photos at first and gradually raise the level to make you send sexual photos.

  • 

    Please, remember this!!!

    Demanding sexual conversations and sexual videos from children or youth and blackmailing them is a clear criminal act.

    • Article 14-3 of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes (Intimidation or Compulsion by Using Photograph and Compilation)

    • Article 11-2 of the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sex Offenses (Intimidation or Coercion using Child or Youth Sexual Exploitation Materials)

    • Article 15-2 of the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth against Sex Offenses (Conversations for purpose of sexual exploitation of children or youth)