Over 100 naked-chat blackmail cases hit HK in Oct, incurring in $4m in losses

A terrified 25-year-old student wired HK$150,000 in 35 frantic payments in a single day to stop scammers from leaking intimate videos—one of more than 100 victims who collectively lost over HK$4 million last month in a surge of AI-fueled sextortion rackets.

The traps start on social apps where strangers charm users into video calls, coaxing them to strip before threatening to flood contacts with the footage. 

In the student’s ordeal, fear of exposure triggered the marathon transfers to accounts dictated by the fraudsters.

Police, via their CyberDefender page, caution that AI tech now renders anything seen online unreliable—even a live face can be fabricated.

They advise to instantly reject video nudity demands or sexual talk and download the Scameter app for instant scam checks.