It used to be -- or at least we thought so -- that the crime of extortion was the stuff of spy novels, and if it became a real-life drama, it involved politicians or movie stars or other people whose wealth or fame might be damaged by secrets revealed.
Secrets can be a great source of anticipation or excitement. Just ask the soon-to-be parents who decline to share, or perhaps even know, the gender of their baby.
But secrets can be turned into weapons, once they're not as secret as at their origin. As Ben Franklin counseled, "Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead."
Edgar Watson Howe, an American editor and author of the late 19th and early 20th century, suggested "The man who can keep a secret may be wise, but he is not half as wise as the man with no secrets to keep."
Secrecy and extortion, it seems, are indeed siblings, or at least it can be said that the latter cannot exist without the former.
And now, it's abundantly clear that the march of technology and the reality that most everyone has some secret make extortion one more looming threat people must guard against.
Worldwide, law enforcement agencies report that incidents of extortion using intimate photos -- "sextortion" is the unfortunate but accurate terminology coined -- are on the rise. Here in Northwest Arkansas, the FBI and local police recently told this paper's news side that the increase reflects growth in the targeting of young males.
"It's not just in Arkansas," said Mark Grimm, special supervisory agent for the FBI office in Fayetteville. "Particularly with young men, the fraud really succeeds if the subject is embarrassed."
The internet and the ubiquity of recent generations' image sharing proclivities become the environment in which the predators stalk. According to authorities, they often portray themselves as young girls more than willing to devote craved-for attention to young males just discovering their sexual desires, ways to express them and the boundaries of personal behaviors.
The crime is not unlike an angler using bait to reel in the big fish; before the target realizes it, the predator sets the hook and is in control. Then comes the demands for money or, perhaps, online banking information for their parents' accounts. Or, in some cases, the assailant will demand the victim engage in sexual conduct.
The victim, facing threats that all will be revealed to their families or their friends, feels helpless to resist the demands.
"Nothing makes us so lonely as our secrets," 20th century Swiss physician Paul Tournier wrote. And a teenager caught in a terrible situation like this will feel as though there is nobody he or she can turn to because of the shame or embarrassment they feel.
What to do?
Remember: You are not alone. Law enforcement or local child safety organizations will help. Most parents do not want to see their children hurt and will seize the opportunity to prevent their child's mistreatment. It's also critical for parents to let their children know that they will help in these situations without judgment, making it easier for them to come forward.
Be abundantly suspicious of anyone met online. Assume they're not who they say. Indeed, often, they can be part of a scam-operating ring of criminals who have perfected their "pitch" to lure unsuspecting victims.
Never send explicit photos to anyone, even trusted people. Real-life relationships in which images are shared in confidence can fall apart, giving an "ex" the same power the extortionist craves.
Assume everything shared online will become public.
Ask for help. Dial 1-800-CALL-FBI or contact your local law enforcement agency.
It's been said, in a comment often attributed to Buddha, that "Pain is certain; suffering is optional." The power of a secret evaporates when a person being extorted makes the choice, hard as it is, to retake control of one's life and deny an extortionist any control over them. The best option is to avoid engaging with strangers online and to strictly limit shared information with anyone and, if anything has been shared, recognizing that embarrassment is temporary.
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NoneExtortionists operate on the power of secrets. Don’t let them have any.