Online safety
Someone is threatening to share an intimate image
This is not your fault. Do not pay or send more. Preserve evidence, stop contact, and bring in help as soon as you can.
Reviewed July 15, 2026Do now
Take these three steps.
- Do not pay, negotiate, or send another image. Save the username, messages, payment request, and threats.
- Block the account after preserving evidence and tighten privacy settings.
- Tell a safe adult and report to NCMEC's CyberTipline if the image involves someone under 18.
“Someone online is threatening me with an image. I need help, and I need you to stay calm. I saved the messages. Can you help me report it and protect my accounts?”
If that is not possible
Keep another route open.
If you cannot tell a parent, consider another relative, school counselor, teacher, coach, healthcare professional, or NCMEC. You deserve help even if you shared the image yourself.
Bring in more help
Do not carry this part alone.
If the threat makes you feel trapped or like you may hurt yourself, call or text 988 now. If someone is coming to hurt you, call 911.
See immediate-help options →Sources
Where this guidance comes from.
- National Center for Missing & Exploited ChildrenSextortion and CyberTipline ↗
Reporting and support options for online enticement, exploitation, and sextortion involving minors.
- Federal Bureau of InvestigationFinancially Motivated Sextortion ↗
Official safety and reporting guidance. Paying or complying usually does not stop the threats.
- Federal Trade CommissionImage-Based Abuse: What To Know and Do ↗
Steps for preserving evidence, reporting, and getting images removed.
- 988 Lifeline988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline ↗
Free U.S. call, text, and chat support, available 24/7/365.
This is general educational guidance. Rules for minors, confidentiality, healthcare, school obligations, and reporting vary by location and situation.
Make it yours