Predators are no longer lurking just in alleyways and public parks. They’re online, organized, and actively targeting children through smartphones, social media, and video chat platforms. And most of the time, they don’t look like criminals—they look like friends.

In our recent Cyber Safety Cop webinar, A Survivor’s Story: Exposing the Dark Reality of Online Sextortion, we heard directly from Kaylee and her mother Angela. At just 12 years old, Kaylee was pulled into what seemed like a harmless group video chat with other “kids.” But every person in that chat room was an adult predator—part of a sophisticated ring spanning multiple states.

They posed as peers. They gained her trust. Then they exploited her for years.