Children in the UK are reporting online sextortion attempts in record numbers, prompting renewed pressure on technology companies to take stronger action against the crime.
The latest figures come from the Report Remove service, which helps children flag intimate images or videos of themselves that have appeared online, or could appear there in future. The service said it received 394 reports last year from under-18s who said they had been blackmailed after sending sexual images to predators.
That total is 34% higher than in 2024, highlighting a worrying rise in cases involving young people and online exploitation.
Campaigners say the increase underlines the need for more robust prevention measures from tech firms. One of the calls being made is for nudity-detection technology to be built into phones, in an effort to identify and stop explicit material from being shared before it can be used to threaten or extort children.
Sextortion typically involves a perpetrator using sexual images or videos to pressure a victim into sending more material, money, or other compliance. In the cases reported through Report Remove, the blackmail followed the sharing of intimate images with predators online.
The issue has drawn attention because the number of reported attempts is rising even as awareness of online risk grows. The figures suggest that children remain exposed to grooming, coercion and extortion through digital platforms and messaging services.
Report Remove is designed to give young people a route to act quickly when intimate content is shared without consent or when they fear it may be shared. The service’s data offers a snapshot of the scale of the problem among under-18s, and campaigners argue it should prompt stronger action across the tech sector.
The rise in reports comes amid broader concern about how children are being targeted online, and about whether existing safeguards are keeping pace with the methods used by abusers. Calls for better detection tools reflect a wider push to reduce the chances that explicit material can be circulated, threatened or weaponised against young users.
With 394 reports in a single year, and a year-on-year increase of 34%, advocates say the figures should be treated as a warning sign rather than an isolated spike. They are urging companies to improve safety features and do more to stamp out sextortion before it escalates further.
