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Scam Rangers – A podcast about the human side of fraud and the people who are on a mission to protect us. We will hear from activists, researchers, prosecutors, human trafficking experts and other advocates, telling the story of scams and scam victims from their perspectives. Most importantly – we can learn what we can do about it. If you are enjoying this show, subscribe, and follow me on LinkedIn for more information and news about online scams: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/
In this crucial episode of Scam Rangers, we explore the dark and disturbing world of Sextortion. This crime occurs when online predators trick individuals, often teens, into sharing nude images or videos and then use these compromising materials to extort money, more images, or other demands. These predators threaten to share the images with the victim’s friends and family if they don’t comply. Our guest, Paul Raffile, a Senior Intelligence Analyst with a career dedicated to investigating online crimes and financial scams, joins us to shed light on this pressing issue.
Key Discussion Points:
Paul explains how sextortion scams unfold, the social media platforms commonly used by predators, and the emotional impact on victims, particularly teens. He shares advice for social media companies on preventing these scams, drawing on strategies from financial institutions that detect account takeovers. We also explore how money is transferred to criminals and the risk signals financial institutions can monitor to spot suspicious activities.
Resources:
Follow Paul on LinkedIn: https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/sextortion-yahoo-boys-snapchat-tiktok-teen-wizz-rcna134200
NCRI Report: https://networkcontagion.us/reports/yahoo-boys/
New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/15/nyregion/social-media-scam-sextortion.html
Article on WIRED: https://www.wired.com/story/yahoo-boys-scammers-facebook-telegram-tiktok-youtube/
Training materials on NBC News: https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/sextortion-yahoo-boys-snapchat-tiktok-teen-wizz-rcna134200
This podcast is hosted by Ayelet Biger-Levin who spent the last 15 years building technology to help financial institutions authenticate their customers and identify fraud. She believes that when it comes to scams, the story starts well before the transaction. She has created this podcast to talk about the human side of scams, and to learn from people who have decided to dedicate their lives to speaking up on behalf of scam victims and who take action to solve this problem.
Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/
ScamRanger: https://scamranger.ai/
