“It’s an odd job for sure.” said Jed Chedid, founding attorney at The Anti-Extortion Law Firm and Adjunct Faculty at the Cleveland State University College of Law. “Our clients are in really tough positions when they come to us.” And he’s right – as a large part of his practice, Chedid represents victims of ongoing extortion and blackmail.
“Our clients are people who have had sensitive information accessed by someone else.” Chedid explained. “That person usually is using the sensitive information to make demands from our clients. Sometimes the demand is money, sometimes the demand is more sensitive information, and sometimes the demand is looping another victim into the blackmail scheme.”
Extortion scams are becoming more and more common, with reports of a 136% increase in extortion and blackmail scams between 2024 and 2025. Chedid explains the scope of the issue, indicating that “the Anti-Extortion Law Firm has represented numerous clients from around the globe – nobody is immune. And, we’re seeing the extortionists become more sophisticated, using AI tools and advanced technology to trap people.”
And the Anti-Extortion Law Firm has been seeing more and more cases, each month experiencing an increase in the extortion victims calling to seek Chedid’s help. These calls come from men, women, and sometimes minors, who have been victimized through the use of extortion or blackmail tactics. These calls come in at all hours of the day and night, as people are threatened by nameless and faceless predators.
This discussion with Chedid begs the question – how can you help somebody in this situation? Chedid responds that, “it is a comprehensive and heavily personalized approach. We make sure to amass the resources to put in place an effective emergency resolution strategy for each client and scare extortionists off.”
We asked Chedid to share the specific strategies used, and he agreed to keep it general – citing confidentiality concerns. “Well, every client gets a free consultation, and gets to talk to an attorney to discuss their problem. Every conversation is protected by the confidential attorney-client privilege. Once the client decides to proceed with representation, we agree on a strategy and begin with an extremely thorough and confidential investigation of what we call ‘data points.’”
Data points are “footprints,” or anything the blackmailer used to contact the victim, whether it is names, phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses, IP addresses, or usernames. “A huge indicator,” Chedid finds, “is payment information.” Oftentimes, blackmailers will use bank accounts or payment processors and link personal information to those accounts. In the world of cryptocurrency, this may become more difficult.
Chedid explained that these data points are given to his cyber team, who use the information to try to uncover the identities of the blackmailers or extortionists. “Those investigators are world-class,” boasted Chedid. “The head of our cyber team essentially wrote the book on cyber-investigations in his 30+ year career.”
Then, what occurs, Chedid explains, is very case specific. “Some clients want privacy and protection – they want to be insulated from these threats. Other clients want to go on the offensive. They want the wrongdoers prosecuted. We stand by our clients whether they want protection and insulation or affirmative justice.”
“Either way, once we become involved, our clients will become insulated from the pressure and will never correspond with the blackmailer again. We then proceed with a host of tactics to get our clients to safe harbor. In 2025, as in 2024, our success rate was astonishing.”
We finally asked Chedid what is the most important thing a victim should know if they are being blackmailed. “Do not pay a blackmailer,” he said seriously. “Paying a blackmailer will never make the blackmailer stop – as it gives them a reason to continue blackmailing you, as opposed to a reason to stop. In our experience, paying only makes the blackmail last longer.”
After pausing, Chedid clarified. “One thing to remember is that victims are facing this immense threat alone. They are trying to live their lives, but fear follows them. Not only do these people need strategies that will protect them during this trying time, but they also need stable legal counsel to assist them in sound decision-making. That’s where we come in.”
For more information about The Anti-Extortion Law Firm and its online blackmail and extortion solutions, visit theantiextortionlawfirm.com.
