FBI Warns of Violent Online Networks Targeting Children and Teens

The FBI is warning parents and caregivers about a growing threat from violent online networks targeting children and teenagers through gaming platforms, social media and other online communities.

Federal investigators say groups commonly associated with the "764" network are using online platforms to identify vulnerable young people, build relationships with them and eventually use threats or compromising material to control them.

The FBI says predators may initially pose as friends or establish romantic relationships with young victims. Once trust is established, they can pressure children into sharing personal information, explicit images or videos and other compromising material that can later be used as leverage. 

Victims can then be coerced into increasingly harmful behavior, including self-harm, violence toward others or cruelty to animals. The FBI says some perpetrators also threaten to expose victims' private information or use tactics such as doxxing and swatting to maintain control. 

The FBI says it is investigating more than 450 people tied to these violent online networks. The agency says the networks operate across the United States and internationally, making them difficult to track and disrupt. 

Parents are encouraged to watch for changes in a child's behavior, including becoming unusually withdrawn, secretive or irritable, changes in appearance or sleeping habits, unexplained injuries, signs of animal cruelty or sudden gifts and packages.

The FBI also recommends monitoring children's online activity, using parental controls and talking openly about the risks of communicating with people they do not know personally. Parents should reassure children that they can ask for help if someone online threatens or pressures them. 

If a child may be the victim of online exploitation or coercion, the FBI recommends preserving messages, usernames and other evidence and reporting the activity to law enforcement or the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center.

The FBI says children should know they are not in trouble for reporting threats or asking for help.

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