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What to do if…
you receive sexual threats online after you rejected someone and they keep escalating

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: Last reviewed: Editorial policy USA guide

Short answer

Get to immediate safety first: if you believe they may reach you now, call 911. Otherwise, stop engaging, lock down the accounts they can use to reach or find you, save the threats if it is safe to do so, and report through the platform and appropriate support channels.

Do not do these things

  • Do not argue, bargain, or keep replying to calm them down.
  • Do not send intimate images, money, gift cards, passwords, account codes, or personal information to make it stop.
  • Do not agree to meet in person or move the conversation to a more private channel.
  • Do not delete the messages if you might want help from a platform, advocate, or law enforcement later.
  • Do not click unknown links or install apps they send.
  • Do not post identifying details about them publicly, because it may increase risk or make later reporting harder.

What to do now

  1. Check immediate safety first. If you believe you are in immediate danger, they are trying to locate you right now, or they are on the way to you, call 911.

  2. Stop the conversation. If it does not increase risk, send one short message such as: “Do not contact me again.” Then do not reply again. If sending that message feels unsafe, skip it and move straight to blocking and reporting.

  3. Lock down the accounts they could use to reach or find you.

    • Block them on each platform and on your phone.
    • Make profiles private, remove contact details from bios, and turn off location sharing.
    • Check posts, stories, maps, tags, and public friend lists for anything that shows where you live, work, study, or spend time.
    • Turn on two-factor authentication for email and major social accounts.
    • Change passwords if you think they know one, guessed one, or got access to an account.

  4. Save only what you need for help. If it is safe, take screenshots that show the handle or profile, dates, times, and the threatening words, then put them in one folder so you do not have to keep opening the thread.

  5. Report the account and the messages on the platform.

    • Use the platform’s reporting options for harassment, threats, sexual harassment, impersonation, image abuse, or nonconsensual intimate images where those categories fit.
    • Include the specific threats, repeated contact after rejection, and any attempt to get images, money, passwords, location, or a meeting.
    • If the platform has a safety or trusted-contact feature, use it to reduce new accounts reaching you where possible.

  6. If the threat involves intimate images, get specialist help now.

    • This includes real images, digitally altered images, deepfakes, threats to leak nudes, or demands for money or more images.
    • Contact the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative Image Abuse Helpline at 1-844-878-2274 for image-abuse guidance.
    • Do not send more images, money, passwords, account codes, or device access in response to a threat.

  7. Bring in confidential support.

    • If you want to talk to a trained advocate, contact RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline by phone, text, or online chat.
    • If the person is a partner, former partner, dating contact, or someone using threats to control you, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline for safety planning.
    • Ask one trusted person to sit with you, help save the basic messages, or help make reports so you are not doing it alone.

  8. Use official reporting routes when risk or cybercrime is involved.

    • For immediate danger, call 911 or local police.
    • For credible, repeated, or specific threats, contact local law enforcement and ask how to make a report.
    • For cyber-enabled crime such as sextortion, account compromise, organized harassment, or threats connected to online accounts, consider reporting to FBI IC3.
    • Use the FBI tips portal if that federal tip route fits the situation or a trusted advocate suggests it.

What can wait

  • You do not need to decide right now whether to make every possible report or take any long-term legal step.
  • You do not need to write a perfect statement; saved messages and a basic explanation are enough for now.
  • You do not need to delete accounts or wipe your phone today unless a specialist or trusted technical helper tells you that is needed.
  • You do not need to confront them, get closure, or prove to them that they are wrong.
  • You do not need to handle every report in one sitting; safety, account access, and the worst threats come first.

Important reassurance

This is not your fault, and rejecting someone does not make you responsible for their threats. You are allowed to stop responding, protect your accounts, ask for help, and take this one step at a time.

Scope note

These are first steps only to stabilize the situation, reduce immediate risk, and preserve options. Later decisions about reporting, legal action, platform escalation, school or workplace help, or specialist support may need an advocate, lawyer, law enforcement contact, or other qualified professional.

Important note

This is general information, not legal, medical, financial, therapeutic, or other professional advice. If you feel in immediate danger, call 911.

Additional Resources

Closely connected guides that may be useful during the same situation or its immediate aftermath.

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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