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What to do if…
you receive sexual threats online after you rejected someone and they keep escalating

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: Last reviewed: Editorial policy UK guide

Short answer

Stop replying, get yourself to a safer pause, keep the messages, and report immediate danger to 999. If there is no immediate danger but the threats or repeated unwanted contact continue, report it to police on 101 or through online reporting.

Do not do these things

  • Do not try to reason with them, negotiate, flirt, apologise, or explain your rejection again.
  • Do not send intimate images, money, passwords, location details, or personal information to calm them down.
  • Do not agree to meet them in person to clear things up.
  • Do not delete the conversation before you have saved what you can.
  • Do not publicly identify them while you are frightened or unsafe; it can increase risk and may complicate reporting.
  • Do not click links they send, install anything they recommend, or open unexpected attachments.
  • Do not handle this alone if you feel scared, frozen, or tempted to reply.

What to do now

  1. Create a safer pause first. Move away from any place they may know you are, stop live location sharing if you can do that safely, and stay near another person if possible. If you think they may turn up, are nearby, are following you, or someone is in immediate danger, call 999.

  2. Stop contact. Do not reply further. Mute, restrict, or block them where this helps you stop seeing the messages, but save what you can first if it is safe and quick.

  3. Preserve the key evidence without repeatedly rereading it. Save screenshots or exports showing the messages, dates, times, usernames, profile links, phone numbers, message links, and any threats to rape you, seriously harm you, find you, expose you, or share sexual images. Put the screenshots in one folder or send them to a trusted person so you do not have to keep opening the chat.

  4. Report the account on the platform. Use the app’s report function for threats, harassment, stalking, sexual harassment, intimate image abuse, blackmail, impersonation, or non-consensual sexual content, whichever fits the platform’s categories. Include message links or screenshots if the platform allows it.

  5. Report to police if the threat is specific, frightening, repeated, or connected to stalking. Use 999 for immediate danger. Use 101, online police reporting, or your local police force if it is not an emergency but they have made sexual threats, threats of serious harm, repeated unwanted contact, or threats to turn up.

  6. If they threaten to share sexual images or deepfakes, contact specialist intimate-image support. The Revenge Porn Helpline supports adults in the UK affected by intimate image abuse, including threats to share. They can advise on reporting, takedown options, and what information to collect.

  7. Lock down the accounts most likely to expose you. Start with your email, main social accounts, messaging apps, and cloud photo storage. Change passwords from a safe device, turn on two-factor authentication, remove public phone or email details, check privacy settings, and turn off location tags where possible.

  8. Bring in one trusted person. Ask them to sit with you, hold the evidence folder, help with reports, or be the person you message instead of replying to the person threatening you.

  9. If this is an ex-partner, date, housemate, colleague, or someone who may know your routines, treat it as a safety issue. Use a device they cannot access if you are worried about monitoring. Consider contacting a stalking, domestic abuse, or intimate-image abuse service before changing shared accounts, shared devices, or location settings if doing so might alert them.

  10. If you are under 18, or the threat involves sexual images of someone under 18, get child-specific support. Use Childline Report Remove if a sexual image or video of you is already online, and speak to a trusted adult or child-safety service if someone is threatening to share one.

What can wait

  • You do not need to decide today whether to make a full statement, pursue a case, or tell everyone what happened.
  • You do not need to create a perfect timeline now; a basic list of incidents is enough.
  • You do not need to fix every privacy setting in one sitting; start with email, main social accounts, messaging apps, and cloud photos.
  • You do not need to confront them, get closure, or prove that you were right to reject them.
  • You do not need to keep checking whether they have posted about you; ask a trusted person or specialist service to help with that if needed.

Important reassurance

Freezing, shaking, feeling sick, or wanting to reply to make it stop are common reactions to sexual threats. The immediate priority is not to win an argument; it is to reduce their access to you, keep a record, and get support around you.

Scope note

These are first steps only, meant to stabilise the situation and prevent harmful next moves. If the behaviour continues, police safeguarding advice, stalking support, domestic abuse support, or intimate-image abuse support may help with later decisions.

Important note

This is general information, not legal, medical, therapeutic, financial, or other professional advice. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 999.

Additional Resources

Closely connected guides that may be useful during the same situation or its immediate aftermath.

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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