susan1986ice@live.com - katyx25@live.com

[october victim]

Hi, I am currently being blackmailed by someone who has the Facebook name: Lina Marie

It's pretty much the same circumstances as mentioned in many of the other threads, having started on chat roullete, where i then gave the "girl" i was chatting with a link to my facebook, and then accepted her friend request. Within minutes she had messaged me a link to a video of myself on youtube exposing myself. She then said that if i didnt pay her £400 she would send the link to my entire friends list. I begged "her" to take it down for quite a while, in which time i had gotten myself into a right state. I knew that if i paid i had no guarantee that they would delete the video, and i really didn't know what to do. I googled my problem and came across this website and its many threads in the forum on the topic. I soon found out i should block the user and report them. I then posted on facebook that i had been hacked and that no-one should accept any friend requests from "Lina Marie" or view any links they may post. What really worries me is that "lina" sent a friend request to my girlfriend, which luckily they rejected. I then deactivated my facebook account. Now there is no sign of this "Lina Marie" on facebook, and the video of me on youtube is set to private, so i can't flag it and have it taken down. The scammers have no way to contact me now, but im afraid they may send the link to my girlfriend, as this was a big part of their threat strategy. Also, is there any way they could have a copy of my friends list and still send it to them? If i re-activate my facebook account in a week or 2 is there much chance of them contacting me again from a new fake facebook account? Is there anything i can do about the video?

This has been THE scariest day of my life, i feel completely helpless and am completely paranoid that the video will be posted on facebook and seen by my peers (some of which i work with, and others which are clients), and it would genuinely ruin my life. And above all i feel like a complete f***ing idiot. Is there anything i can do to provide myself with a little peace of mind?

Thanks.

[Ruffled Feathers]

Hi October Victim,

I am very sorry to learn you were scammed, I am glad you found our site, we can help with any and all of your questions.

First of all you did the right thing by blocking all further contact with this scammer--- I would also go to google alerts and request that if this video shows up, to remove it immediately --- they are wonderful under these circumstances, it will be gone within minutes.

So far it would seem, you have done all the right things to block this scammer. You can reactivate you FB account but just ensure you have all high priority privacy settings in place, as you should do with emails, skype etc. Just tell your friends, you were hacked and do not open any emails from people they do not know - but it is also good to confide in someone, what you are going through --- you will be amazed at the support you will receive.

But we need all your information emails, IP's, skype messages, especially when they ask for money, so that it can become a warning to others. If you have pictures please post them as well. BUT under no circumstances do you ever respond again to this scammer.

This site has experienced people, who are here to help you through this and to help you recover and heal--- just always remember, you are not at fault and they probably saw you as a vulnerable person and that's when and why they hit.

Now is the time to look after you, get lots of rest and eat properly ---your mind and body need to be cared for right now.

Come talk to us in the chat room anytime, there is always someone there to help and/or just listen to help you recover.

Take care of you now,
RF

[october victim]

Hi RF, thanks for such a quick reply!
Have just set up google alerts, which will email me any time anything with my name in it is posted.
Did you mention a way to have it deleted automatically?
I guess i'll have to just wait it out, i'm really hoping that now they can't contact me they'll just lose interest.
If the youtube video is currently set to private, can the scammer still send links to people on my friends list?

Thanks a load for the advice, its a small weight off my mind just talking about it.

[october victim]

Oh and as for details of the scammer, the only thing i have is the display name "Lina Marie".
She had no profile picture, had only 4/5 friends and said she was from michigan.
She had no profile on chatroulette, and i never took note of the IP.
I also deleted the message from "her" on facebook soon after receiving it, as i was in a blind panic and afraid my girlfriend might find out.

I'm sorry I can't be more helpful

[SlapHappy]

Thanks for posting. Sorry you were not able to get a picture of "her."
No, RF was not quite correct there. Google alerts will email you when something shows, and will give you a link, but it is up to you to do something about the results. It is only an alert that something new is online that you specifically posted in the box, like "real name, phone number, etc." The scammer could send them out to links IF he saved them, and IF she/he wants to risk her/his entire profile and take the time and energy needed to re-establish a new identity. So, the chances are slim. Especially since you did not pay, and blocked her/him right away. There would have to be a bigger financial motive to go after you, when easier pickins are right in front of him. I would not worry too much over that, ok?

[firefly]

Hello, October Victim,

can you tell us "her" username on Youtube? Maybe we can find "her" using this element.

[october victim]

Because the video is now private, i can't see the username
Should have made a note of it when they first sent me the link but i was in too much of a panic and wasn't thinking.
Still no reply from youtube as to whether they can take the video down. is there ANYTHING i can do?

[firefly]

October victim,

the only thing you can do is to stop the contact. The details about the scammer are important to help other potential victims. If you dont have them, that´s it. Stay strong, dont accept any contact attempt online from unknown persons for a while and you will be fine. So long the scammer can not find you to ask for money, he will move to the next victim.
You have here: viewtopic.php?f=20&t=1242 the general topic made by other victims and users in this type of scam, with some useful advices.

[october victim]

Sorry that I can't be more helpful to others

If i've changed the URL and username on my facebook, is it possible for them to find me again?

Again, much thanks for the advice!

[firefly]

No problem, October victim,

we just try to find more details for other potential victims. if you dont have them, we may hope that someone else will report this scammer.

About

If i've changed the URL and username on my facebook, is it possible for them to find me again?

If you dont use the same profile picture like before and you change the url and username, little chances for the scammer to find you. Not just on Facebook, but on every single place where you have met the scammer online.
Usual, we advice our members to change email adresses (if is possible), usernames, passwords, phone numbers, bank accounts (if the money was send through Paypal or bank account), everything that was used with one scammer, because this one will sell the details to another group for re-use with a different approach.
Even so, be careful with unknown persons trying to contact you online and dont provide your real life details if you have not met the person in real live.