Law enforcement agencies across Canada are sounding the alarm over a rise in sexual extortion (“sextortion”) against young people.

The problem goes far beyond sextortion, as this is only one form of many variations of online sexual harms that target youth today. Teenagers in Canada can be victims of sexual catfishing, AI-generated sexual deepfakes and violent extremism.

Some high-profile sextortion incidents include the deaths by suicide of Rehtaeh Parsons, Amanda Todd, Daniel Lints and a boy in British Columbia.

Technology-facilitated sexual violence (TFSV) includes harmful practices such as sexual name-calling and rumour spreading, non-consensual distribution of intimate images (nudes) and other forms of sexual harassment.

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