Danish party proposes crackdown on overseas sextortion hubs

Denmark should target international sextortion operations at their source, the Socialist People’s Party’s justice spokesperson Karina Lorentzen said Friday, citing a 300% surge in financial sextortion reports since 2021.

Speaking to public broadcaster DR, Lorentzen called for a “far more offensive police effort” against the cross-border networks behind the scams, which primarily target boys and young men aged 12 to 24. “I think we need to do more—like going after these fraud factories,” she said.

Her proposal draws on a British model where authorities, in cooperation with Nigerian police, dismantled so-called “romance scam” hubs in West Africa. A 2023 BBC investigation linked such operations to roughly 500 arrests across Europe and Africa for large-scale fraud. “Nigeria is precisely one of the hotspots mentioned in connection with sextortion,” Lorentzen noted.

When asked about the resource demands of expanded international operations, she acknowledged the need for investment but framed prevention as a long-term saving. “Handling these cases already consumes resources. Preventing them would be a better use—sparing victims these distressing experiences.”

The call follows a fresh warning from Denmark’s National Special Crime Unit (NSK), which reported 1,842 financial sextortion cases in 2025—97% involving male victims. Scammers typically pose as young women on social platforms to extract explicit images, then demand payment under threat of exposure. NSK has previously flagged significant underreporting due to victim shame.

Advice for avoiding sextortion scams • Reject friend requests from unknown accounts. • Cut contact if conversations turn sexual or pressuring. • Restrict social media privacy settings. • Never comply with demands for money or additional material—block the account instead. • Document interactions (screenshots, profiles) and report to police. • Seek support from helplines like Red Barnet’s SletDet or Børns Vilkår’s children’s hotline.