To get rid of blackmail, stop responding to the demands, save every message and screenshot before you cut off contact, change your passwords, and report the blackmailer to local police and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. If intimate images are involved, use a free hash-based removal tool to pull them from major platforms. Those steps work in that order, and each one strengthens the next.
Do Not Pay and Do Not Reply
The single most important move is to refuse. Paying feels like it buys silence, but it almost never does. Blackmailers who receive one payment learn you’re willing to pay, and they come back with higher demands. Many victims describe a cycle where each payment buys a few weeks of quiet before a new threat lands.
Money is not the only concession to withhold. Do not send more compromising material, do not perform favors, and do not agree to meet in person. Every concession is leverage.
If you have already paid, that does not disqualify you from reporting or from legal protection. It does mean you should involve law enforcement quickly, before the demands escalate.
Save the Evidence Before You Block Anyone
Document everything first. Take screenshots of every message, email, social media post, and chat log tied to the blackmail. Make sure each capture shows the date, time, sender information, and the specific demand. Save threatening voicemails and note the phone numbers, dates, and times of any calls.
Where you can, save the original files rather than only screenshots. Hidden information inside a file, like when it was created or sent, can matter later for investigators.1National Institute of Standards and Technology. Digital Evidence Preservation If the technical side is beyond you, screenshotting is better than losing the record. Do not delete anything, even messages that seem minor. An attorney or forensic specialist can organize it properly later.
Lock Down Your Accounts
Change the password on your email first, because email is the recovery route into almost everything else. Then do the same on your social media, banking, and any other account the blackmailer might know about or have touched. Use a unique password for each one.
Turn on two-factor authentication wherever it is offered. That adds a second verification step, usually a code sent to your phone or generated by an app, so a stolen password alone is not enough to get in.
Once you have finished preserving evidence, block the blackmailer across every platform where they have contacted you. Archive the conversations rather than deleting them, so the records survive. If you suspect your devices or accounts were accessed, have someone check for malware or unauthorized logins.
Report the Blackmail
Once evidence is saved and accounts are locked, file a report. Which agency depends on how the blackmail is reaching you.
Start with local police if the threats are in person, come from someone you know locally, or make you feel physically unsafe. Bring copies of your evidence. A police report creates an official record you may need later.
For anything happening online, through email, through social media, or by messaging app, file a complaint at ic3.gov. The Internet Crime Complaint Center is the FBI’s central intake for cyber-enabled crime, and your filing helps federal investigators both pursue your case and connect it to patterns across other victims.2Internet Crime Complaint Center. Internet Crime Complaint Center3Federal Bureau of Investigation. Electronic Tip Form Be specific: include URLs, usernames, platform names, and dates.
For threats of physical harm, blackmail that crosses state or international lines, or situations with imminent danger, contact your local FBI field office directly.
Filing with more than one agency is allowed and often useful. A local report and an IC3 complaint do different work, and neither cancels the other.
If Intimate Images Are Involved
Sextortion, where someone threatens to share nude or sexual images unless you pay or comply, is now one of the most common forms of online blackmail. The FBI tracked more than 13,000 reports of financially motivated sextortion involving minors alone between October 2021 and March 2023, and adults are targeted at higher rates still.4Federal Bureau of Investigation. Sextortion: A Growing Threat Preying Upon Our Nation’s Teens
Two free services can help pull images down from participating platforms before they spread. On both, the image never leaves your device; the tool generates a unique digital fingerprint that platforms use to find and block matches.
- Take It Down, run by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, is for images that were taken when the person in them was under 18. The service is at takeitdown.ncmec.org.5National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Take It Down
- StopNCII.org is the equivalent for adults 18 and older.6StopNCII. Stop Non-Consensual Intimate Image Abuse
These tools only work on participating platforms, so they will not reach every corner of the internet. They cover many major social media and hosting services, and it is worth generating a hash even if the images have not been posted yet, so platforms can block the content before it takes hold.
Federal law now reinforces this. The TAKE IT DOWN Act became federal law in May 2025, with full platform compliance required by May 19, 2026. It bans non-consensual online publication of intimate images, including AI-generated deepfakes, and requires covered platforms to remove reported material within 48 hours of a takedown request and make reasonable efforts to catch duplicates and reposts.7Congress.gov. S.146 – TAKE IT DOWN Act 119th Congress (2025-2026) The law also carries criminal penalties and mandatory restitution for people who publish or threaten to publish such images.
When to Bring in a Lawyer
An attorney with experience in criminal defense, privacy law, or cyber law can do things that reporting tools cannot. A cease and desist letter sent to a known blackmailer sometimes stops the behavior without a public escalation. A lawyer can also tell you whether your particular situation gives you stronger options under state or federal law, and represent you if the case moves into court.
Civil court is where many victims recover money. If you know who the blackmailer is, you can sue for compensatory damages covering what you can measure, like money paid, lost income, and legal fees, as well as emotional distress and reputational harm. Punitive damages are possible when the conduct was especially reckless or malicious, though many states cap them or require a higher standard of proof, so what you can recover depends on where you file.
Protective Orders
If you know your blackmailer’s identity, you can petition a court for a restraining order or order of protection. The name and process vary by state, but these orders generally bar the person from contacting you, approaching you, or continuing the threatening conduct. Violating the order is a separate crime, which gives police a faster route to intervene if the blackmailer keeps going. Filing usually requires showing evidence of the threats, which is one more reason to preserve everything from the start.
What the Blackmailer Is Risking
Federal law treats blackmail and extortion seriously, and knowing the stakes can help you report with confidence. Online and phone-based blackmail that crosses state or international lines typically falls under 18 U.S.C. § 875, which covers threats to reputation or property transmitted for the purpose of extortion, with penalties of up to two years in prison, rising to up to 20 years when the threat involves physical injury.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 875 – Interstate Communications The Hobbs Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1951, covers extortion affecting interstate commerce and also carries up to 20 years.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1951 – Interference With Commerce by Threats or Violence Every state has its own extortion and blackmail laws, and a blackmailer can be prosecuted under both federal and state statutes.
If the Pressure Feels Unbearable
Blackmail takes a real psychological toll. Anxiety, shame, sleep loss, and depression are common, sometimes severe enough to interfere with daily life. If you are in crisis or having thoughts of self-harm, confidential help is available any time of day.
- 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988 for a trained crisis counselor, 24/7.10Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Sextortion Victim Resources
- Crisis Text Line: text HOME to 741741.
- Thorn, at stopsextortion.com, focuses specifically on sextortion victims and offers step-by-step guidance; you can also text THORN to 741741.
These schemes are built to make you feel trapped and alone. Counselors on these lines hear from people in your exact situation every day, and reaching out is often the step that breaks the pressure enough to let you work the rest of the plan.