I’m seen too many people lose money and their mental health to this common scam over in r/scams, so I want to share this info on this sub. If you experience this, keep calm and do not send money to anyone blackmailing you! The r/scams wiki describes the scam like this:
The underage girl scam. This scam usually starts on a dating app and you will encounter a normal woman whose profile says she is above 18. Later you will be contacted and told that the girl is underage. They’ll usually pose as the girl’s father, another family member, or a police officer. They will tell you that your life will be ruined and you will be a sex offender, but will offer you the chance to pay them to make the problem go away. The stories they use as to why you need to fork over money vary, but the common ones include therapy for the girl, payment for a broken phone or computer, etc. Of course, there is no girl and no crime has been committed, so if you are involved in this scam all you need to do is ignore their threats and move on with your life. The scammers may contact you again in the future after you block/ignore them, so be ready in case that happens. If you have already sent money to the scammers, you should try to dispute the transaction and see if you can get your money back. This is a [very common scam](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/search/?q=underage&include_over_18=on&restrict_sr=on&t=all&sort=new) and [here](https://www.wired.com/story/the-phone-call-from-hell/) are [some](https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/teen-says-hes-the-victim-of-a-sextortion-scam/275-21216b29-df76-44f4-b20a-cb726e19d42e) relevant news [articles](https://www.jbsa.mil/News/News/Article/1503978/sextortion-scams-continue-to-occur-dont-give-into-scammers-demands/). NOTE:\\ Scammers pretend to be underage boys as well and the text above still applies, but it’s called the underage girl scam as those are the vast majority of cases.
5 comments
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Yeah, if a girl’s “dad” calls you out for hitting on his underage daughter and then asks for money…that man is not her father. (Even if she does call him daddy).
If they actually were cops and the person were underaged, they would show up at your house, not contact you through a messaging app…
Why are these men matching with girls just out of high school?
To add to this, part of the scam is requests/sharing of nude pics before the “father” comes into the picture. So, don’t send those to anyone you haven’t met in person. If the scam does happen, report it immediately to the police. Most are already tracking this scam and it assists with their investigation of the scam. Had this happen to one of my young co-workers who reported it immediately.