Presentation will shine light on reality of sextortion

An online safety advocate will teach parents about sextortion on Monday in Brandon with support from local police.

Val Caldwell is hosting an event to inform parents about the process that leads to sextortion, and to platform Canadian parents who have dealt with their child being sextorted.

“Sextortion is happening everywhere, and I just don’t feel like people are aware of how serious it is, how prevalent it is, like how often it’s happening to kids,” Caldwell told the Sun on Friday. “I want to raise awareness.”

The event will hear from a P.E.I. father whose son died by suicide after being sextorted, as well as a parent of an 11-year-old who was recently sextorted.

The Brandon Police Service will also provide a presentation at the event.

The event is scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans in Canada Association building at 31 14th St. Caldwell will emcee.

Caldwell said the goal of the presentation is to make sextortion better understood in order to prevent it, and to equip families to be able to respond to the crime when it takes place.

Despite common perceptions that sextortion is a “big city” problem, it does impact families in the Prairies, Caldwell said.

“I want parents and caregivers to understand that the internet is worldwide,” she said. “Once you open that door … your kids have a window to the world. But that means the world has the window back to them.”

Sextortion takes place when a person threatens to share intimate images of the victim if the victim does not comply with demands. Caldwell said that more than 90 per cent of the crime is “just about money.”

“It’s just people in other countries who are looking for money and they’re targeting kids,” she said. “I just want people to understand how it works and how we can support kids through it rather than blame and shame them.”

Gaming spaces are a common platform where sextortion begins, Caldwell said. She said a predator “befriends” the child before asking them to communicate on a separate, isolated platform, initiates sexting and then begins to threaten the child with blackmail once a photo has been received.

Caldwell said she will share information about the platforms that are often used by predators, as well as the messaging apps that can be seen as a “red flag.”

BPS will discuss precautions, as well as a course of action that can be taken if sextortion attempts are made against local families, police Chief Tyler Bates told the Sun in an emailed statement.

“Our presentation will focus on raising awareness about sextortion, prevention strategies, and the importance of knowing how and where to seek help,” Bates said.

The police service is taking part because the event is a proactive approach to safety and well-being in the community, he said.

A number of resources will be on hand at the educational event, including the Sexual Exploitation Awareness Team for Westman, local counselling firms, the Suicide Prevention initiative and EmpowerMen, Caldwell said.

Caldwell said she has made education about online risks her “passion project” after formerly working for Child and Family Services of Western Manitoba.

Caldwell said she noticed in her career there was “very little to no” education taking place in Manitoba about the emerging threats introduced by online platforms. She now travels Manitoba and Saskatchewan teaching about online threats for children and families, regularly visiting schools, including Brandon School Division. She speaks with thousands of children per year, she said.

“My tagline is ‘one kid at a time,’ and I just really want to do my part to try and keep kids as safe as possible in a world that most of us don’t understand,” she said.

“That’s what it’s all about. If we get one parent out on Monday night and this changes something for them and helps them walk a child through something difficult, then it’s worth it.”

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com