FTC: Company netted at least $60 million charging sextortion victims for help it didn’t provide

An Ohio-based company allegedly collected at least $60 million by tricking panicked customers facing sextortion threats into buying help the firm didn’t provide, according to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) complaint filed Tuesday.

Digital Forensics Corporation (DFC), owner Dmitry Belkin and several affiliated companies are behind the scheme, which allegedly ran from February 2023 through July 2026, the FTC said. A federal court has temporarily ordered the “sextortion assistance” company from doing business until a decision is reached, the agency said.

Desperate defendants receiving threats from sextortionists who said they will share naked photos or other sensitive sexual information with family members and employers have turned to DFC for help only to be manipulated into spending thousands, the FTC said in a press release.

The company would lure victims into paying between $1,499 and $20,000 in exchange for so-called Phase 1 services that it claimed included stopping the attack, pinpointing the sextortionist’s location with a “tracking campaign,” providing a detailed investigative report, notifying law enforcement and sending a cease-and-desist letter, the complaint said.

In reality, DFC did none of these things, according to the FTC.

“Instead of communicating with the sextortionist through the victim’s account, defendants routinely change the victim’s account settings simply to block the sextortionist’s communications,” the complaint said. “Instead of obtaining investigative information, defendants fabricate chat transcripts.”

DFC also allegedly routinely reused pre-saved location coordinates — typically for Nigeria and the Philippines — to trick customers into believing they had located the sextortionist.

The company used a script for sales calls, the complaint said, and would customize language to play to specific fears different victims might have. For example, victims in the military would be told they could face a dishonorable discharge while married victims were warned that a sextortionist could target their spouses and in-laws, the complaint said.

“Defendants falsely portray themselves as digital forensics experts, claiming they

can track and identify sextortionists, prevent the spread of explicit material and coordinate with

law enforcement to bring criminals to justice,” the complaint said.

DFC staffers allegedly told victims law enforcement would not assist them. The FBI has long recommended that victims ignore and block sextortionists, the complaint said, but the company’s workers would tell customers that doing so is “the last thing you want to do,” according to the complaint.

Another level

The company additionally peddled “Phase 2” services for victims willing to pay thousands of dollars more, the complaint said.

While telling victims they only offered Phase 2 in rare cases, the complaint alleged that every customer was pressured into buying the second round of assistance, which purported to include ongoing monitoring of customer accounts, as well as the entire web, to defend against further attacks, the complaint said.

Many customers complained to DFC, citing a contractual refund policy, but the company often would not honor it, the complaint said.

Additionally, the firm allegedly used fake positive reviews while censoring negative reviews, according to the complaint. Upset customers would allegedly be given fake Better Business Bureau websites to complain to.

The firm also allegedly told customers they would not receive partial refunds unless they removed negative reviews. It purchased positive phony reviews by “paying Uber drivers to

post fabricated testimonials using staged photos,” the complaint said.

The FTC said it has received hundreds of reports about DFC’s business practices.

DFC did not respond to a request for comment.

The firm allegedly marketed itself on search, video sharing and social media platforms to find victims, the press release said.

The case will now be decided by a federal judge, the press release said.

In March 2025, USA Today published an expose on DFC, making similar allegations.

The USA Today report alleged DFC offered customers’ installment financing plans typically charging up to 18% interest and called customers dozens of times to collect payment.