As college athletes become bigger targets for sexual exploitation online, the NCAA and FBI announced a partnership Monday to educate athletes on how to prevent private images from falling into the wrong hands. Financial name, image and likeness deals have increased the online public presence of college athletes, making them desirable victims for criminals, an FBI cyber expert said. FBI cyber division Section Chief Taushiana Bright noted that student-athletes' visibility increases their exposure to targeting and the leverage an offender believes they hold when threatening to expose an athlete to a coach, team, school or sponsor.

Bad actors obtain private images by conning athletes or hacking accounts, then use them for extortion. The partnership aims to educate athletes on prevention and provide access to law enforcement, reporting tools, victim services and mental health treatment. NCAA vice president of enforcement Jon Duncan said the NCAA grieves the sexual exploitation of young men and women, including college athletes, calling the criminal behaviors sickening.

Recent incidents highlight the problem. Former Ravens assistant Matt Weiss faces federal hacking charges for allegedly stealing private videos and photos from over 3,300 people, mostly female athletes. In 2022, Penn State athletes were victims of sexual extortion. Last year, ESPN reported the suicide of a Michigan high school athlete after a sextortion ring demanded payment.

The FBI noted that in 2025, its Internet Crime Complaint Center received more than 75,000 sextortion submissions. The FBI offers tips including avoiding storing sensitive images on internet-accessible sites, using strong passwords and multifactor authentication, and reporting threats at ic3.gov.