The FBI is warning parents about a disturbing online threat targeting children. A neo-Nazi sextortion groupknown as ‘764’ is being investigated in hundreds of active cases across the U.S. According to the bureau, the group targets children as young as 9 years old, coercing them into creating explicit and harmful content.To help parents protect their kids, the FBI has released key warning signs and safety tips to spot potential grooming or exploitation early.The cult-like group is spreading quickly in the United States and has ties with connections to neo-Nazis and Satanism. The members of this group contact children through gaming chat rooms, social media and phone apps and then “methodically target and exploit minors.” Discord and Telegram have been their targeted channels of contacting youngsters, as per CBC.According to ABC News, 764 is the largest network with 250 open cases, at least one in every FBI office.
What does the FBI say?
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The bureau issued a public service announcement on Tuesday saying, “These networks use threats, blackmail, and manipulation to coerce or extort victims into producing, sharing, or live-streaming acts of self-harm, animal cruelty, sexually explicit acts, and/or suicide.”Members circulate the photos with each other and threaten the victim about posting them publicly to keep them under their control.The FBI has described the members as “nihilistic violent extremists … seeking to destroy civilized society.” “Some threat actors may be engaging in criminal activity solely for sexual gratification, social status, or a sense of belonging, or for a mix of other reasons that may not be ideologically motivated,” said the agency.
Warning signs your child is being targeted by 764
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The FBI has issued some warning signs to look out for in order to figure out if your child is being targeted by the gang. These are:
- Kids engaging in self-harm or expressing suicidal thoughts
- Suddenly acting withdrawn or moody
- Sudden changes in eating, sleeping and dressing habits
- Pets being injured or dying under mysterious circumstances
- Kids carving words or symbols into their skin
- Kids writing in blood or similar-looking liquids
What is the 764 cult ?
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The 764 cult is an outgrowth of a much larger and older organization called the Order of Nine Angles, which has ties in neo-Nazism and Satanism. The gang was founded by Bradley Cadenhead when he was 15 years old, in 2020 and named it after his own zip code.Recently, “Trippy” and “War” , two 20 and 21-year-old members of the gang, were arrested by the police in Greece. The two allegedly led a core subgroup called the 764 Inferno, which was a core members, invite-only group, and had exploited at least eight minors as young as 13 years old. Trippy later went on to become the head of the gang in August 2021, after the founder was arrested by the FBI.The results of the activities of the gang have been fatal to the extent that a Canadian father recently lost his 15-year-old daughter to suicide after she was exploited by the gang for at least two years. He said to The Fifth Estate that he missed the early signs of his daughter’s exploitation, which included self-harm. “That’s the part that I hate,” he said, “It was happening right in front of me and I didn’t recognize it,” he added.One needs to be really aware of and monitor one’s child’s digital footprints and activity to ensure that they are protected from such digital threats that have proved to be fatal in many cases.
