CHICAGO - The FBI says sextortion is one of the fastest-growing crimes in the country.

Sextortion occurs when someone threatens to release private or sexual images unless the victim sends more images or pays money.

In 2024, nearly 55,000 people reported sextortion to the FBI. Reported losses totaled more than $33 million.

What we know:

"Sex extortion is under-reported, even with the amount of cases that we have. For a variety of reasons, people are scared," Kevin White said. "But any small piece of information that an individual has relating to one of these, pass it to us."

Even minor details can help launch an investigation.

Financial institutions are also being trained to detect red flags in teen accounts that may signal sextortion.

Terri Littrell, a former banker and now compli

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