Gatineau police have released a short cartoon video with a serious message. They hope it will raise awareness about Sextortion and help prevent it.

Sextortion, refers to extortion or blackmail using images or sexual videos of a victim. Fraudsters threaten to publish the compromising pictures unless the victim complies with demands, often for cash.

Gatineau police say Sextortion is one of the most common computer scams and the number of complaints continues to grow.

This year it has received more than thirty complaints of Sextortion of victims ranging in age from 16 to 58. One of the victims took his own life.