Pittsburgh Students Warned About Online Blackmail Scheme

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Police are warning college students in the Pittsburgh area about an online blackmail scheme.

Police say male students at Carnegie Mellon University and other colleges in the Pittsburgh area have been told to make payments in order to prevent the release of sensitive videos and photographs.

Police say the victims are contacted on social media and encouraged to remove their clothing and engage in sexual acts on camera. They are then contacted by a person who claims to have recorded the acts, who demands money to prevent the release of the recordings.

Officers are hoping victims will come forward.

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