Sextortion Consultations Rising in Japan

Tokyo, July 28 (Jiji Press)–Consultations by victims of sextortion are rising in Japan. A portmanteau of “sex” and “extortion,” sextortion describes a situation in which individuals experience physical and emotional control or face financial demands by perpetrators weaponizing sexual images taken without consent. Victims may be exploited financially and coerced into illegal part-time jobs. Paps, a Tokyo nonprofit organization supporting victims of digital sexual violence, started taking statistics about sextortion consultations four years ago, when they started rising. The number of people consulting about sextortion jumped to 1,864 in fiscal 2024, which ended in March last year, from 535 between July 2023 and March 2024. In fiscal 2025, the number increased to 3,040, with 36 pct men, 19 pct women and 45 pct unspecified. Cases involving financial extortion have been on the rise recently, according to Eri Uchida, a board director at Paps. One such case involved a victim meeting an individual on a language learning app. The victim was asked to go on a video call on another app, which involved both sides being nude. Money was then demanded from the victim, with a threat that the images would be leaked. Many consultations were by men under the age of 30. “If sexual images are shared to perpetrators, they may be used for financial demands,” Uchida said, adding that society was at fault for not teaching people about such a “structure of perpetration.” “Many men don’t recognize that they were victims of sexual violence,” she said. Succumbing to such demands even once could lead to further threats and financial exploitation, as well as the possibility of being caught up in illegal part-time jobs. Some victims were told to lend their bank accounts to the perpetrators, after refusing to pay any more money. “If people continue to respond to requests, there is a risk of being recruited as money mules in special fraud cases,” Uchida said. “I urge victims never to give money when demanded, and to block contact,” she said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]