Fujairah Police warn of electronic extortion

Fujairah: Fujairah Police are warning residents about a recent wave of extortion cases involving video web chats.

Fujairah Police warned residents over exposure to financial blackmail over the internet through the use of instant messaging and Skype and urged users not to accept any anonymous requests.

Colonel Hamid Mohammad Al Yamahi, Director General of Police Operations at Fujairah Police, said Fujairah Police received several complaints about financial blackmail over the internet using instant messenging and Skype.

He pointed out that the criminal methodd used by the suspects started by sending requests which were accepted by victims.

Hackers also sent software links to the victim’s computer which can apparently penetrate the computer directly. When the victim clicked on the link, the victim’s photos and data were stolen.

“The suspect threatens the victim, … [that unless they pay] a sum of money, they will expose the images on the web,” Colonel Al Yamahi said.

There have been a number of cases logged by Fujairah Police so far.

Colonel Mohammad Ahmad Abdullah Al Shaer, Director of Criminal Investigation, reminded people to be cautious about talking to strangers on the internet and he advised against accepting invitations from anonymous sources.

He also urged computer users to install anti-virus software that is updated constantly to build a security firewall. Such software makes it difficult for users to open links that are suspect.