(NEWsnet/AP) — Meta says it has removed 63,000 Facebook accounts in Nigeria that were engaging in financial sextortion scams.

Meta removed Facebook accounts and groups run by the group under its “dangerous organizations and individuals” policy.

Sextortion involves persuading a person to send explicit photos online and then threatening to make the images public unless the person pays money or engages in sexual favors.

There has been a rise in such cases in recent years, fueled in part by a loosely organized group called Yahoo Boys, operating mainly from Nigeria.  FBI previously had warned of a significant increase, with victims primarily boys ages 14 to 17.

Meta said its investigation found that the majority of the scammers' attempts did not succeed and mostly targeted adult men in the U.S., but added that it did see “some” attempt to target minors.  Meta reported those to National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The removed accounts included a “coordinated network” of about 2,500 accounts linked to a group of about 20 people who were running them, Meta said.

In April, Meta announced it is deploying new tools on Instagram to protect young people and combat sexual extortion.

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