The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has joined forces with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to launch a program designed to combat the sexual exploitation of college athletes. This initiative addresses a growing concern where athletes' private images are targeted online, particularly as they leverage their name, image, and likeness (NIL) for marketability.
The FBI announced the collaboration on Monday, detailing that malicious actors often exploit athletes through phishing schemes, credential stuffing, and by impersonating social media customer service representatives. These tactics are used to gain unauthorized access to personal accounts and information.
Shohini Sinha, assistant director of the FBI Victim Services Division, highlighted the increased vulnerability. "Athletes have large social media followings, expended further by NIL activities that not only increases the exposure for targeting, it increases the leverage vendors believe they hold to exposure them," Sinha said. "There is a pressure to protect the clean image of their school, team and themselves."
According to the FBI, hackers can steal images and subsequently post or sell them. This can escalate to sextortion, where athletes face harassment, stalking, or have stolen content published on their own social media profiles. Neither the FBI nor the NCAA has released specific statistics on the number of athletes victimized by such schemes. The partnership's primary focus will be on educating athletes about these risks and preventative measures.
"If we can play even a small role in preventing these crimes or getting justice or appropriate support for the people impacted by them, we will do everything we can to help," stated NCAA Vice President of Enforcement Jon Duncan.