Muscat: When Salma, 27, sent a video clip of herself dancing in her room to her boyfriend, she had no idea that he would one day blackmail her with it.
The Omani woman told Gulf News she was in “total shock” after her boyfriend broadcast the video of her dancing in a revealing dress on Whatsapp.
It was an apparent act of revenge after she broke up up with him.
“I trusted him very much, I did not expect him to do that to me,” she told Gulf News.
Oman, like many of its Gulf neighbours, is a conservative society where women are expected to dress modestly and cover their bodies in front of men who are not their husbands or immediate male relatives.
Salma reluctantly reported the case to the Royal Oman Police (ROP), which led to her ex-boyfriend’s arrest and jailing.
But many women are afraid to prosecute their attackers, fearing they would expose their families to “shame”.
It wasn’t easy for Salma to come forward but she said an awareness campaign launched this year gave her the courage to come forward.
She said the misery and suffering she went through often made her suicidal.
It was only after she started to see a psychiatrist when her life started to turn around.
While Salma’s case was an act of revenge, many men and women purposely trick their romantic partners to send compromising pictures or videos to them in order to financially extort them.
Mohammad Barakat, a psychologist based in the capital Muscat, said that cyber extortion criminals exact a huge emotional, physical and financial toll on their victims.
“Some have considered suicide, but besides that most develop insomnia, depression and eating disorders,” he told Gulf News.
He believes society has an obligation to help these victims recover from their trauma.
In October, Omani authorities launched a two-week awareness campaign called “Report and your secret will be kept in a well” to encourage victims to come forward and report such crimes.
In 2015, at least three were jailed and fined for dismantling photos and video clips of their girlfriends, according to the Public Prosecution.
Article 16 of Oman’s cyber law stipulates that anyone who publishes news or pictures of someone’s private life can be jailed for up to three years and fined up to 2,000 riyals.
According to the ROP, most extortioners operate from outside the country which makes prosecution difficult.
In 2016, 170 cyber extortion cases were registered. This is a huge number compared to only a couple cases reported in previous years. Ninety per cent of which the victims were male.
Observers believe that the actual number of female victims of cyber extortion may be higher but many women are hesitant to report scammers due to the fear of social stigma.
“Many women are reluctant to report extortion cases as they afraid to lose everything. Some of them even took loans to pay their fraudsters,” said Ahmad Al Beloushi, Information Technology expert.
Jamal, a 37-year-old, engineer, was seduced by an Arab girl after she sent him a friend request on Facebook.
After developing an online relationship with the woman, he started regularly skyping with her.
“She took off some of her clothes and asked me to do the same,” he said.
The next day she sent him a video of the entire Skype call — she had recorded it unbeknown to him.
The woman, also, was able to hack his phone somehow, and got the number of his wife and other family members.
“She demanded I pay her 5,000 riyals, or she would send the video to them.
I kept crying and I was depressed for days,” he told Gulf News.
He decided to bite the bullet and report her to the police rather than pay her the money.
Not a day goes by when Jamal does not regret his actions.
“My wife immediately asked for a divorce. My six-year-old son lives with his mother. I barely see him because I am ashamed for what I did,” he said.
While Jamal lives life with daily regret, Salma has been able to turn her life around.
Today, she volunteers in Muscat with a group that helps spread awareness about cyber extortion.
She warns young men and women to never send pictures or videos to anyone, regardless of how close they think they are to them.
“I learned there is no one you can trust in this world, except for your mother.”
Salma is still a single and she dreams one day to get married and have children like many other Omani women.
After a year of not speaking to her, her family forgave her and welcomed her back.
