Woman blackmailed with private photos, hacker demands ₹22.5L

he accused reportedly reached out to the woman on Sunday through Instagram and Snapchat, sending her intimate photos and videos she had earlier shared with her boyfriend

MUMBAI: A 20-year-old woman was allegedly blackmailed and threatened with circulation of her private photos by a cyber fraudster, who demanded ₹22.5 lakh in cryptocurrency after the accused allegedly hacked into her boyfriend’s Telegram account to access the files.

Woman blackmailed with private photos, hacker demands ₹22.5L

The accused reportedly reached out to the woman on Sunday through Instagram and Snapchat, sending her intimate photos and videos she had earlier shared with her boyfriend. The victim was shocked to find her personal content in the possession of a stranger and approached the police to lodge a complaint.

The complainant, a Tamil Nadu native staying with her aunt in Bhayander for studies, said that she had grown close to her boyfriend during a trip to Rajasthan and had shared a few photographs with him on his request. These were saved on his Telegram app, which was later allegedly hacked.

Police said the accused threatened to circulate the content among her family and upload it on pornographic websites unless she paid 10 Ether, a cryptocurrency valued at approximately ₹2.25 lakh per piece.

Following the complaint, an FIR was registered against the unidentified individual under Sections 75, 78 and 308(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Sections 66(D) and 66(A) of the Information Technology Act.

Senior police inspector Jitendra Kamble said the woman’s boyfriend was questioned but he denied his involvement, claiming his social media accounts had been hacked. “We are trying to trace the hacker who tried to blackmail the complainant,” Kamble said.