A stranger initiates a video call, then threatens to share a nude recording
A WhatsApp video call from an unknown number — the camera shows a partially or fully nude woman. The scammer records you (often with morphed or pre-recorded footage spliced in), then sends a screen recording and threatens to share it with your contacts and family unless you pay.
Also known as: sextortion video call scam, WhatsApp nude blackmail, honey-trap video call
What to do right now
- 1 Do not pay. Do not reply. Do not engage further. Payment never ends the threat — the demands escalate
- 2 Block the number on WhatsApp and your phone. Report the account to WhatsApp (Settings → tap the contact → Report)
- 3 Take screenshots of the threats and the number
- 4 There is no 'CBI cyber cell' that takes UPI fines. Any threat referencing payment to clear charges is fake
- 5 File at https://cybercrime.gov.in immediately — sextortion is taken seriously and can be acted on
- 6 Talk to one trusted person — family, friend, or counsellor. The shame is engineered by the scammer; the act of telling someone breaks the leverage
- 7 Report at https://cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930 (national cyber helpline).
Red flags
- ⚠ Unknown number, surprise video call — the call connects to nudity within seconds
- ⚠ Caller follows up with a screen recording (often morphed) and demands payment
- ⚠ Threats reference 'CBI complaint', 'Cyber cell', or sharing with your family and employer
- ⚠ Caller offers to 'settle' for an amount that grows with each payment
- ⚠ Payment via UPI to a personal account, or to a 'CBI fine portal' link
Sextortion is one of the most damaging cybercrimes in India and is dramatically underreported because of the shame it weaponizes. Cases have ended in tragedy because victims feel they cannot tell anyone. The scammer’s entire leverage is that silence.
The clearest fact: paying does not end it. There is no “settling.” Every payment becomes evidence that you’ll pay more. The way out is to tell someone — a family member, a friend, a counsellor — and to report at cybercrime.gov.in. The threat ends when you stop responding, not when you pay.
If you are in crisis, in India the iCall helpline (9152987821) provides free mental-health support. You are not alone, and this is not your fault.