JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — As students return to school, FBI Jacksonville is prioritizing efforts to educate parents on how to protect their children from online predators.
In partnership with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office and the Duval County Public School Police Department, the agency held a news conference to raise awareness about the growing threat of online dangers such as sextortion, traveling predators and predator networks.
According to FBI Jacksonville, they have seen a 60% increase in sextortion cases this year.
“We continue to see an increase, last year the numbers were very high but in just the seven months this year, we’re already at the numbers for last year,” said FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley.
Sextortion can start on any site, app messaging platform, or game where people meet and communicate and then ask children for explicit photos.
“Sextortion predators are out there that persuade kids to provide photos of themselves which they then get extorted and are used to go and try to get money from them which they try to get from their parents,” said Carley.
Through outreach efforts like the Be Smart campaign, these agencies are working to ensure parents have the information they need to identify potential red flags and help bring awareness within the community.
“Getting the message out to our students, our parents, and our staff of all the different dangers that are out there to our students. Trying to get ahead of that and prevent that before any of our students get hurt or victimized,” said Duval County Public Schools Police Chief Jackson Short.
If you believe your child or someone else you know may be a victim of a crime, or if you want to report suspicious activity, please contact FBI Jacksonville or your local law enforcement agency.