Friday, March 29, 2024 | Ramadan 18, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

New victims of electronic extortion are on the rise

Haider-al-Lawati
Haider-al-Lawati
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Electronic extortion in the world has not stopped as more and more people enter social networking programmes. This has led some to get caught by gangs dealing with these programmes. In the Gulf, some individuals were victims of electronic extortion and the cases have gone up over the past two decades. Some youngsters have to suffer financial, social and psychological problems as a result of their inability to cope with the consequences of such extortions.


Arab families suffer from electronic extortion as a result of their children’s excessive use of social media, lack of understanding of these issues, and how to behave with them in case of a trap. The most vulnerable are Arab nationalities living in the Maghreb region, besides some Middle Eastern countries.


The excessive use of some social media has resulted in enticing and seduction through sexual means and to electronic extortion. This has spread fear of shame and scandal among the victims.


In this context, the countries of the region have begun organising courses and seminars for families, youth, school students and civil society members to educate them and learn more about e-extortion. Such activities are offered and are provided by security departments, judicial bodies and social societies.


The cybercrime is an extension of normal criminal activity, in which the victim is threatened and intimidated by publishing photographs or films or leaking confidential information of their own, in exchange for making immediate payments or exploiting the victim for unlawful acts such as disclosure confidential information of the employer or other illegal acts. These are done through e-mails or well-known social networking sites.


One of the American newspapers (The New York Times) has pointed out that out of every 100 people using the Internet, one of them is subjected to electronic extortion, whether through audio recording, videos, photos or even written messages.


In such cases, due to fear of facing a scandal in our Arab societies, young people go out of their way to meet the demands of the extortionists without resorting to help from their parents or security authorities, which sometimes fulfils the demands of the opportunists. This has led some of them to fall into trap and to think about suicide or exposure to mental disorders.


The Gulf society is exposed daily to these issues, and the phenomenon has spread in the Gulf societies and is evident from the statistics given by the authorities. The more ignorant the community is, the more vulnerable it is to extortion, and the less tricky to act in such cases to find and discover the motives of the extortionist.


During the past years, the civil society and law enforcement authorities have held many awareness programmes and seminars on this phenomenon in various governorates of the Sultanate. These programmes continue, and the situation is similar in many other Gulf societies.


These problems are rising in proportion to increase in means of communication and advanced devices and technologies. Some figures show that more than 57 per cent of those between the ages of 16 and 24 in the Sultanate are in social media. Some local statistics also show that 86 per cent of Omanis use Facebook accounts, 80 per cent have connections via Whatsapp, while 40 per cent have Google and Instagram accounts and 36 per cent are on Twitter.


In this regard, it requires people not to respond to any unknown friendship requests. One needs to secure the account well so that it is not hacked and to prohibit anyone who sends strange and suspicious messages with sexual and other temptations. Users of social networking sites are also asked not to place information on those devices that have a high degree of privacy, and not to send photos to unreliable people.


haiderdawood@hotmail.com


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