Australia’s online safety regulator is calling out the world’s biggest tech companies for failing to protect young users from a rising wave of sexual extortion. The eSafety Commissioner specifically pointed to Apple, Google, and Meta, highlighting severe gaps in how these platforms detect and report organized abuse.
A newly released transparency report reveals the watchdog received over 2,000 sextortion complaints between July and December 2025. Criminal networks are actively exploiting design weaknesses in popular messaging apps to corner victims using high-pressure tactics for quick financial gain.
The Blind Spots in iMessage and WhatsApp
Apple drew specific criticism regarding iMessage. The regulator noted that the company already deploys detection methods for nude photos sent to children. But Apple still fails to use language analysis tools to flag recognizable coercion scripts often used by scammers.
Gaps in reporting persist across the industry. Services like iMessage, WhatsApp, Discord, and Google Messages still lack dedicated, easy-to-find categories for users to report sexual extortion. The eSafety Commissioner requested these tech giants start reporting their compliance with the Basic Online Safety Expectations back in 2024. Despite having access to third-party on-device analysis tools, the corporate response remains inadequate, according to a recent syndicated report.
While the threat to teenagers is growing, the demographic data reveals an unexpected primary target. Young men between the ages of 18 and 24 actually make up the highest volume of victims. That specific group accounted for roughly 800 reports in just a six-month window. Meanwhile, over 10% of teenagers aged 16 to 18 have fallen victim. More than half of those users were initially targeted before they even turned 16.
How the Under-16 Ban Changes Platform Accountability
This transparency report is not just a routine warning. It arrives right after the Australian government passed June 2026 legislation granting the eSafety office expanded powers to take tech giants to court. This clash directly ties into the country’s broader, aggressive push to ban social media entirely for users under 16.
Organized criminal networks are effectively colonizing platform environments. If platforms like Snap, Microsoft, and Meta cannot prove they are proactively stopping this abuse, they now face severe legal and financial penalties under the new regulatory framework.
The Verdict
The tech industry can no longer rely on reactive reporting tools to stop organized extortion. With Australian regulators now holding the legislative power to enforce strict compliance, companies like Apple must integrate proactive language analysis into their messaging ecosystems. Users should ensure their current device safety features are fully enabled while waiting for these mandatory platform upgrades.