A U. of I. student reported that he attempted to purchase a watch being offered for sale through the OfferUp app. The student used a banking app to pay the initial asking price of $350, and then the purported seller continued to demand more money to cover shipping costs. The seller then sent false shipping tracking information and demanding another payment. The student ended communication and contacted police. By this time, he had paid a total of $489 in six separate transactions.

A U. of I. student reported that he met another person through a dating app, and the online conversation resulted in the student sending the other person intimate photos and his phone number. The offender then text messaged the student with a threat to send the photos to the student's social media contacts if the student did not pay money. The student did not pay, and the conversation ended.

A U. of I. student reported that she attempted to purchase a ticket being offered for sale through the social media app GroupMe. The student paid $100 for the ticket via a mobile banking app, and later called police when she noticed that the same person was continuing to sell the same concert ticket on social media.

A U. of I. student reported that he was the victim of sexual extortion in 2021, when an unknown person obtained intimate images of the student and threatened to post them to social media unless the student paid money. On Oct. 4, 2023, the same person contacted the student again to repeat the threat and demand money.

A U. of I. student reported that he entered a video chat with an unknown person after matching with them on a dating app named Bumble. The unknown person encouraged the student to engage in intimate acts during the video chat. After the chat ended, the unknown person demanded money under the threat of sending the video to the student's social media contacts. The student did not send any money and blocked the account. The unknown person called the student repeatedly over the course of 30 minutes.