Reviewed by Irfan Ahmad.
The FBI warns the public about sexual exploitation (SE) actors targeting adult and underage victims by illegally accessing their social media and personal accounts to steal and post their explicit content, “also known as non-consensual intimate images,” for sale on criminal marketplaces. The Aug. 10, 2026, alert says SE actors use social engineering and cyber intrusion tactics to target specific individuals of interest, “who may or may not be known to the actor,” or general targets of opportunity.
The FBI says sexually explicit images or videos are typically accessed and stolen “unbeknownst to the victim” before being shared or posted in community forums or sold to illicit marketplaces. Personally identifiable information, including names, dates of birth, email addresses, phone numbers and social media usernames, is often posted with the explicit content, exposing victims to continued re-victimization.
The agency identified three tactics for illegal account access: high-volume password and PIN attempts, social media customer service impersonations (where "SE actors send victims text messages stating their social media account is being disabled or locked unless they respond with a verification code"), and phishing. Phishing can involve fake websites and emails that look like social media support messages and contain harmful/hacking links.
The FBI advises people to use unique, complex passphrases and PINs with multi-factor authentication, avoid storing sensitive photos or videos online. be cautious about embedded links in emails and text messages, and avoid sharing login information or unrequested access codes.
DIW Take: Stay informed about hackers’ tactics and online threats through reliable news, think critically about unexpected messages, and remember that attackers may use urgent or emergency claims to pressure you into acting quickly.
Image: Markus Spiske - Unsplash
Read next: Trojans and riskware are the most commonly detected threats on Windows and macOS
The FBI warns the public about sexual exploitation (SE) actors targeting adult and underage victims by illegally accessing their social media and personal accounts to steal and post their explicit content, “also known as non-consensual intimate images,” for sale on criminal marketplaces. The Aug. 10, 2026, alert says SE actors use social engineering and cyber intrusion tactics to target specific individuals of interest, “who may or may not be known to the actor,” or general targets of opportunity.
The FBI says sexually explicit images or videos are typically accessed and stolen “unbeknownst to the victim” before being shared or posted in community forums or sold to illicit marketplaces. Personally identifiable information, including names, dates of birth, email addresses, phone numbers and social media usernames, is often posted with the explicit content, exposing victims to continued re-victimization.
The agency identified three tactics for illegal account access: high-volume password and PIN attempts, social media customer service impersonations (where "SE actors send victims text messages stating their social media account is being disabled or locked unless they respond with a verification code"), and phishing. Phishing can involve fake websites and emails that look like social media support messages and contain harmful/hacking links.
The FBI advises people to use unique, complex passphrases and PINs with multi-factor authentication, avoid storing sensitive photos or videos online. be cautious about embedded links in emails and text messages, and avoid sharing login information or unrequested access codes.
DIW Take: Stay informed about hackers’ tactics and online threats through reliable news, think critically about unexpected messages, and remember that attackers may use urgent or emergency claims to pressure you into acting quickly.
Image: Markus Spiske - Unsplash
Read next: Trojans and riskware are the most commonly detected threats on Windows and macOS
