Is it blackmail season?

Is it dry season for blackmailers? A few people at my school said they're being blackmailed again even after the school was informed the first time (by the blackmailer) and due academic process was carried out. Do they just keep coming back your whole life lol. What happens if they keep tormenting the school? Will they threaten jobs in the future? I was considering getting some help from a writer for a chemistry theory essay but am not so sure now....

Blackmailers don't have "seasons." There's no such thing as a legitimate writer or essay company that provides good work during the busy (writing) seasons and then shifts to blackmailing "mode" during the slow (writing) season. If their business model is building a clientele of satisfied clients by providing good work, that's what they do year-round. Conversely, if their business model is blackmailing, that's what they do year-round, not just during slow periods.

One thing you can definitely do to reduce any risk of blackmail is to simply use a writer who doesn't mind disclosing (and proving) his full name, location, and contact information before payment, especially in the US. Blackmailers can only succeed to the extent they're anonymous and/or located outside the jurisdiction of reliable law-enforcement authorities.

Nobody located anywhere in the US, for example, could possibly pull off a blackmail scheme against a victim who knows his real identity, because all the victim would have to do is report it to a state DA's office or to the nearest FBI field office.

The same goes for essay companies, except that there have been instances detailed (elsewhere on this forum) where an essay-company writer went rogue and perpetrated blackmail on a client whose project he or she had provided through an essay company.

@FreelanceWriter
Thanks for your reply! Since I've found this forum, my classmates are wondering, what should they do now? Why would a blackmailer come back after exposing them anyway? They are now threatening approaching future employers.

I'm just going to paste my response to someone who contacted me through my website a couple of days ago asking about an identical situation. If you're that same person, I highly suggest that you just take this advice, get on with your life, and stop worrying about it:

Don't respond at all. Block every means by which they contact you and do not respond at all. The screenshots (etc.) are totally fabricated. Responding only encourages them to continue threatening you. Regardless of what they say, just do not respond at all and block every means by which they contact you. That advice will be the same regardless of whatever else you tell me that they've done or told you...block and ignore.

In response, that person told me that the blackmailers said they'd already contacted the school and showed supposed "proof" in the form of an email to the school and an auto response from the school about being on vacation.

They just looked up the info on the uni site and fabricated it. Think about it: What would be the point of demanding more money if they already shot the hostage? They didn't get a real response about being unavailable for the holidays, either...because they wouldn't have known that would happen when they first sent it, which means they tried to kill the hostage before even negotiating. Ignore their stupidity and just put it out of your mind. If you actually get contacted by your university, let me know before doing anything...but you're not going to be...they're bluffing and just trying to scare you. Just get on with your life and have absolutely no communication with them again and they'll go away. You should BLOCK every number and/or email from which they contact you without even reading their messages.

They'll keep trying, but they'll give up the fastest and just move on to other victims if you just ignore them, completely.

@FreelanceWriter
That wasn't me, but feels better to know this is going around and not just happening to 2-3 people. Ofcourse, I am not happy that it is happening to anyone at all. Thanks for your advice. With my cohort, what happened was that screenshots and emails from the university were NOT fabricated and the U really did reach out to students asking them to report academic dishonesty. Students used the student Union to deal with the issue. Two of those students have graduated recently and they're being blackmailed AGAIN, this time threatening to report to employers. They both work with big companies who probably don't even give half a rat's ass. They're just worried that the scammers will expose them on LinkedIn or torment the university again asking it to revoke their degrees, as the blackmailers have said in their recent emails.

It's concerning to hear about the issue of blackmail circulating within your school community. Blackmail is a serious and illegal act that can have significant consequences for both the victims and the perpetrators. It's important to address this situation with sensitivity and responsibility.

Here are some points to consider:

Recurring Blackmail: If individuals are being blackmailed repeatedly, it could indicate a pattern of behavior that needs to be addressed more comprehensively by the school and, if necessary, law enforcement. Schools should take steps to ensure the safety and well-being of their students.

Institution's Response: If your school has already been informed about a blackmail incident and has taken appropriate action, it's important to trust in their ability to handle the situation. It's possible that new incidents may arise, but addressing them consistently and effectively is crucial to deter such behavior.

Potential Consequences for Blackmailers: If individuals persist in blackmailing and harassment, they could face serious legal consequences. Law enforcement may get involved, leading to criminal charges and potential legal actions against them.

Academic Integrity: When it comes to seeking help with academic tasks, like your chemistry theory essay, it's important to approach it in an ethical manner. Hiring a writer to assist you is acceptable as long as the content produced is original and used as a learning aid. Avoid engaging in dishonest practices, as this could potentially lead to academic consequences.

Choose Ethical Services: If you decide to seek assistance for your essay, make sure to choose a reputable and ethical writing service that adheres to academic integrity principles. These services should provide original content and support your learning without violating any academic standards.

Report Suspicious Activities: If you or anyone else becomes aware of ongoing blackmail or harassment, it's essential to report it to the appropriate authorities. This could include school administrators, teachers, counselors, or even law enforcement if necessary.

In general, it's important to prioritize your own ethical behavior and make choices that align with the principles of honesty, integrity, and respect for others. If you have concerns about a specific situation or are considering seeking external help for your academic tasks, it's a good idea to seek advice from trusted adults or mentors who can provide guidance based on your individual circumstances.

Blackmail has become a year round practice for the academic scammers. In fact, some of them have even taken to blackmailing graduates. Threatening them with certification revocation with regards to their graduation diplomas. It is always best to disregard these blackmail attempts. It will only have value if the student or graduate gives it importance. Ignoring them the first time they contact you would result in them giving up almost immediately. You should also, be using a disposable email address and mobile number for this purpose so that they will be unable to reach you by any means. Only if they cannot contact you successfully can you stop them from blackmailing you.

Do blackmailers come back years later?

I was blackmailed close to 2 years ago and they actually followed through with my school. My school penalized me but otherwise life moved on as usual. I work now and have been seeing very newly made profiles, profiles with Indian names, no profile photo viewing my LinkedIn. Could it be the scammers again? Is it normal for them to follow up years later? I don't know what else they could do except threaten to tell my employer. I got a notice from them last summer threatening me again but I ignored it. Since then, nothing has happened. Maybe I'm just paranoid? Thanks in advance

It's a moot point that almost doesn't matter, because you can never trust blackmailing criminals to stop blackmailing you and leave you alone after you pay them, anyway. At least one blackmail victim on this forum reported paying off their demands, only to receive additional demands for more money and the exact same threats, afterwards. Regardless of the meaningless details of different cases, it's always a mistake to pay them or to respond to any of their messages in the first place. They're most likely to leave you alone and focus on their latest new victims if you completely ignore (and immediately block) their attempts to contact you, whether it's the first time or the same criminals bothering you again years later.

Once you respond to any of their messages, they'll continue trying to bully you into paying; and human nature being what it is, they're much more likely to actually make the effort to hurt you to retaliate after the frustration of investing more of their time into communicating with you because your initial responses made it seem likely worth their time. Enable privacy controls over all of your public profiles to limit their ability to find you. Never respond to any blackmail demands at all. Immediately block every means by which they continue to try to reach you, and report them to the authorities: ic3.gov/Home/ComplaintChoice in the US and actionfraud.police.uk/how-to-report-fraud in the UK. Use only writers who provide you with their complete ID and address information on request (and enough related information to enable you to confirm their identity, independently), because blackmail is absolutely impossible without anonymity, especially for any writer living in a First-World country with a functional criminal justice system.

@FreelanceWriter
'Use only writers who provide you with their complete ID and address information on request......'

I do worry that you are probably deliberately ignoring the fact that writing essays for students attending British universities is aganist the law. Skills and Post 16 Education Act 2022. Stop encouraging students to endanger their future careers by cheating.

Got a scammer's photo

Just told him I'd like to get to know him better before giving him any assignments, sent a fake picture and he sent me this back. I trust it is him given the overall persona and candidness of it.

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Or you could be scamming each other by sending each other fake pictures. It would be better to simply move on and forget the scam that is being run on you. You cannot run to the authorities with this picture since it does not prove the identity of your blackmailer. It just proves he knows how to scour the web for free images or, he knows how to use an AI to create a pretty believable image of a non-existent person. Don't waste your time on this. If your employer has not received any communication from him, your employer never will.

The whole idea of dealing with potential blackmail online is scary stuff. I get how it can feel like your back's against the wall. But hey, have any of you checked out SPAM? They've got some solid tips on how to handle situations like this.

In my opinion, it's crucial to know your options and not panic. Sometimes these threats can feel overwhelming, but understanding how to protect yourself and what steps to take can really make a difference. What do you all think? Have any of you been through something similar? How did you handle it? Let's share our experiences and help each other out.

All of the help you need to avoid being blackmailed in the first place and everything that you definitely should and/or should not do if you're already a victim is fully detailed in Post #s 2, 4, and 9 right here in this thread.