Perpetrators offer personal loans to entice victims to send videos of themselves nude, including with their personal identification visible. In one instance, a perpetrator demanded the victim send a video of herself apologizing in the nude.

Japan is seeing a growing number of cases of digital sexual violence in which perpetrators offering to lend money coerce their victims into sending sexual images or videos as so-called “naked collateral.”

This is a new kind of sexual violence that preys on individuals facing economic hardship.

In some cases, perpetrators gave specific instructions to their victims, such as to “film three videos” or to “make sure the text of your ID is clearly visible.” They convinced their victims to share their personal information alongside recording sexually explicit videos. Some perpetrators even prepared a written contract threatening to share the victim’s images online if they didn’t pay back the money.

A video posted to X showed a naked woman pleading, “I’ll do anything you ask, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, just please lend me the money.” In a separate post, she wrote that she was being threatened and needed help.

Collateral for dept repayment isn’t the only reason perpetrators force their victims to send sexually explicit photos and videos.

Victims’ images and personal identification documents are bought and sold online for the perpetrators’ profit and amusement. This has occurred on Gigafile, a Japanese service for sharing large files online, and X.

While it is believed that many such instances of digital sexual violence are occuring, there are essentially no systems to address this issue or provide support for victims.

*This article contains descriptions of sexual violence and threats. Please read at your own discretion.

Perpetrator demanded a nude video of victim holding their ID

“The other day, someone came to us for help about about a serious case of ‘naked collateral.’”

I was speaking with Kazuna Kanajiri, director of the nonprofit PAPS, which assists victims of digital sexual violence. I had never heard the term before.

“What’s ‘naked collateral’?” I asked.

“An individual was seeking help from PAPS because she had fallen victim to a scam in which someone offered to lend her money if she sent nude selfies or videos of herself masturbating. When the perpetrator demanded repayment, they threatened to make her meet in person for sex or to spread the images she had sent,” Kanajiri explained.

The individual who came to PAPS about this case was an 18-year-old woman. She had found someone on social media offering to “lend money” and had borrowed 60,000 yen from them. The woman had a poor relationship with her parents, and they were pressuring her to repay the money she had already borrowed from her family.

The lender she found through social media had told her, “As a condition for lending you the money, first film and send me a video of yourself naked and holding some form of ID, such as your driver’s license.”

When the perpetrator made this request, they made specific demands about the way she should film it, such as “make three videos” and “make sure your ID is legible.” They also sent her images, showing what appeared to be other victims, “for her reference.”

The perpetrator also demanded that she sign a “contract” that the perpetrator themself had made. The contract text contained the following.

Repayment shall be made in person. The lender shall determine the location.

 

Repayment installments shall continue until completed, with no period of limitation.

 

If repayment is delayed and the lender cannot make contact with the borrower, the lender shall take the following actions:
・Report the borrower as missing to the police
・Post the borrower’s personal information on social media
・Sell the borrower’s information, images, and videos on various websites
・File a small claims lawsuit (sure to appear in court), seize assets (savings, household goods, house, land)

The trap of loans advertised on X

Just how many victims of “naked collateral” are there? Kanajiri says that victims and perpetrators usually connect via social media. The following hashtags are often used.

#NeedMoney

#PleaseLendMoney

#WillLendMoney

#PersonalLoan

I found many posts when I tried searching these hashtags on X. There were posts both asking to borrow money and those offering to lend it. While posts blatantly demanding sexual images in exchange for loans were rare, it appeared that the parties involved worked out the details via private direct messages.

Personal loans conducted over social media platforms have already become a significant problem. The Japanese government, including agencies such as the Ministry of Children and Families as well as the Financial Services Agency, issues warnings about new “illegal lending tactics,” including loans that involve coerced sexual relations as a condition for lending money.

The government warnings note that even if the borrower believes they are engaging in a loan between individuals, it’s possible that the lender is actually part of an illegal lending organization but posing as an individual.

“Don’t you realize I know your address, workplace, and family home?”

As I continued to investigate, I witnessed harm from naked collateral playing out in real time, through a woman posting to X to share what was happening to her.

The woman posted that a lender she connected with through social media demanded that she send multiple videos of herself naked as a condition for lending her money. However, they didn’t lend her the money even after she sent the videos. She said she was now being threatened after blocking the person’s account.

The woman also posted screenshots of her conversation with the perpetrator, in which the perpetrator threatened her while also dangling the possibility of lending her money.

“I’ll expose you more and more if you don’t contact me right now.”

 

“Don’t talk naive then block me and run away. Don’t you realize I know your address, workplace, and family home?”

 

“If you send a video of yourself apologizing, I’ll give you the loan. Apologize naked.”

Later that day, the account threatening the woman posted a video to X — it showed her naked and crying as she apologized.

“I’m really sorry for doubting you and saying such harsh words.”

 

“I’ve got trouble with my family, so please… please… give me the loan. I’ll do anything you ask.”

 

“24 hours a day, 365 days a year, I’ll go wherever I’m called, do whatever you ask, and show my gratitude through both actions and words, just please give me this loan.”

I messaged the woman to see if she would speak to me, but her X account was deleted soon after, and I lost contact.

Looking at the perpetrator’s account, it seemed they would find posts on X of people asking to borrow money and reply “Message me over DM.”

“Life over”

Perpetrators coerce their victims into sending sexually explicit photos and videos because they can use these images to blackmail their victims forever.

What’s more, they can also make money by selling the videos.

Many images and videos of women naked and holding their personal identification are circulating online.

They can be found on file-sharing services like GigaFile, posted to X, and on websites and other platforms used to share non-consensual, sexually explicit images. Some of the images are sold for a fee, while others are free for anyone to acquire.

On these platforms, images showing naked women holding their ID are often accompanied by descriptions that treat the victim like “content” for the amusement of others.

Life over.
She must entertain us in order to receive money.
Enjoy the moment when a promising young woman’s dark past is born.

Some posts claimed that such “works were filmed with the performers’ consent,” thereby making them legal. However, such claims cannot be trusted, as these sites often feature images of victims who did not consent to being photographed or having their images published.

Extortion, coercion, and violations of the Money Lending Business Act are crimes

What options for recourse do victims of naked collateral have?

First of all, any contract that demands sexual images in exchange for a loan is invalid. Japan’s Civil Code does not recognize contracts that are “contrary to public order or good morals.”

Rather, the perpetrator’s actions may constitute multiple crimes, and consulting with the police may lead to the perpetrator’s arrest.

For example, repeatedly giving loans without registering as a “money lending business” violates the Money Lending Business Act. Threatening to share someone’s images if they don’t repay is intimidation, while coercing someone into an act through threats or assault — such as demanding the victim apologize naked in return for keeping the images private — is extortion, and both are illegal.

Distributing images violates the Revenge Porn Prevention Act. If the victim was a minor (under 18), the perpetrator can be charged under the Child Pornography Prohibition Act.

In February 2025, the Kanagawa Prefectural Police arrested an individual on suspicion of violating the Money Lending Business Act, for lending money in exchange for sexual acts or sexual images. The suspect threatened individuals he had found on social media and lent money to, saying things like, “I’ll reveal your name” and “I can sell your sex tape, so I don’t even need you to repay me.”

Deletion requests are a heavy burden for victims

PAPS, which supports victims of digital sexual violence, operates a consultation hotline 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

The organization provides various kinds of support, such as by preparing a “notice” to inform the perpetrator that their contract is invalid. If the victim’s images have already been shared online, PAPS can search for them and request their removal on behalf of the victim.

However, there are still challenges. It’s not possible to know for sure that all the relevant images have been deleted. Once downloaded to a perpetrator’s smartphone or computer, they can be reposted again and again.

Deletion requests are required to remove images published online without permission. In principle, the victim must make requests to the website administrator or other relevant parties. If the admin does not comply, the victim can file a lawsuit in court, and if granted, the court can issue a deletion order. However, the process generally takes several months at a minimum.

What’s more, the victim must bear the costs associated with the lawsuit. Even while addressing one instance of images being posted without consent, the images continue to spread. The same procedure must be repeated for each post that is found.

The “weapon” that Japanese society ignores

Many victims of naked collateral live in fear of their images being shared online, and they struggle to seeking help from those close to them even if said images are in fact leaked. The true extent of the harm caused by naked collateral remains largely unknown.

Sexually explicit images shared with others are not merely “embarassing” — they can become “weapons” used to threaten or blackmail victims.

In the United States and Europe, numerous cases of victims of digital sexual violence taking their own lives have come to light. Following complaints from bereaved families, governments, local authorities, courts, and investigative agencies have taken steps to regulate online platforms and protect victims. In the US, Congress has questioned the CEOs of platforms like X and Meta over digital sexual violence against children.

Despite digital sexual violence harming victims across Japan, no effective countermeasures have been implemented, nor do any public agencies specialize in addressing this issue. Even if victims request that their images be removed, there is no guarantee that they will be deleted.

While society turns a blind eye, more and more people fall victim to digital sexual violence, including naked collateral.

(Originally published on November 28, 2025.)

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