Manitoba's RCMP is warning of an online extortion scam using actual passwords of victims.
Police received reports of cyber-extortion where an email says the suspects have infected the victim’s computer with a virus that allows them to control the user’s webcam.
The suspect threatens to release a video of the victim taken while they were watching pornography to the victim’s contact list. If the victim pays a certain amount in Bitcoin, then the suspect will not release the video. In reality, the scammers don’t have any video of the victim.
Police say the scam has been around for a while but the use of actual passwords is bringing some new attention to the scam. There are a number of ways the suspect could have gained access to passwords including data breaches and hacking.
It is recommended people change all passwords regularly to protect themselves from any type of hacking or scam. The web resource www.haveibeenpwned.com is a great way to check if your data has been breached.
If you received this email or any similar emails, the RCMP ask that you do not pay and make sure you report it to the police.
