UK users of Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook have received a recent email alert that should not be ignored as it could result in financial losses. The latest warning comes from Action Fraud, highlighting a surge in ‘extortion scams’ targeting these email platforms.
In February 2025, only 133 suspicious emails were reported, but this number dramatically spiked to 2,924 reports in March. The alarming emails typically allege that hackers have monitored the victim’s computer activity, claiming to possess evidence of visits to explicit websites. Some victims are even threatened with exposure through recorded videos captured by their device’s webcam during browsing sessions. The scammers demand a ransom to prevent the release of this supposed footage.
Moreover, the new wave of emails often includes personal details such as actual passwords or home addresses, presumably obtained from past data breaches. A victim shared his ordeal, revealing that he received an extortion email demanding $500. Recognizing it as a scam, he deleted the email but soon discovered unauthorized access to his bank and social media accounts.
Detective Chief Inspector Hayley King, Head of Prevention at the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, emphasized the lengths to which criminals go to enhance the credibility of such extortion schemes. She advised recipients to forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk and promptly delete them. If genuine personal information is detected, it may have originated from a historical data breach, prompting users to verify past data breaches for potential impact.
Victims of extortion are urged to contact local law enforcement, especially if intimate images are at risk of exposure. Action Fraud stresses the importance of not engaging with phishing attempts and recommends forwarding such emails to report@phishing.gov.uk. The inclusion of legitimate passwords or personal data in phishing emails signifies a potential historical data breach affecting users, necessitating immediate password changes if a current password is compromised.
