Northampton County District Attorney Stephen Baratta’s office warned Tuesday of a cyber-scam under investigation that is targeting local residents.
Potential victims receive an email with a photo of their home taken from Google Maps, with the sender alleging to have “disconcerting footage of the recipient through spyware that was installed on the phone,” according to a news release from Baratta’s office.
The recipient is pressured into scanning an attached QR code to send money in the form of cryptocurrency or “the footage will be released to all contacts stored on the victim’s phone,” the release states.
“This scam is a form of extortion known as ‘Sextortion,’” the release continues. “This is a cyber scam that tries to blackmail victims with the threat of releasing incriminating photos and/or videos of their victims.
“Though these scammers will claim to know all of your personal information, this footage does not exist and no one should send these scammers any form of payment.”
Baratta recommends anyone who receives this or a similar message to contact local law enforcement authorities.
“If you do not wish to file a report, the email can be deleted,” the release states. “It is not recommended to respond to these emails.”
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Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.