A "sextortion" email scam reported to Sidney-North Saanich RCMP last week is also surfacing in Victoria andf on the Lower Mainland.
Major Crime Detectives are warning the public after receiving 7 complaints in the past few days.
In it the fraudster claims to have surreptitiously captured video of the victim viewing pornography, and threatens to share it with the victim's contacts if a ransom is not paid.
Investigators say the existence of a video has not been substantiated in any of the incidents.
The scammer also includes a password that the victim has used in the past, obtained by fraudsters using data stolen by hackers and posted online.
Using the emails and a password gives an air of legitimacy to the fraud attempt, and while victims say there cannot be any such video -- they are convinced their computer has been compromised, and they invest in costly, unneeded security fixes.
Police say the best weapon to protect yourself against online fraud is to stay educated, and protect yourself by changing passwords on a regular basis.
For more information about fighting fraud check out vicpd.ca/fraud