The criminal offense of sextortion is a form of blackmail or extortion and is committed when a person threatens to publish private nude, pornographic, or explicit photos, videos, or images of another person’s body or sexual activity unless the person provides something of value—such as money, sexual activity, more sexual images, or the performance of sexual acts (often online using webcams).

Sextortion laws vary from state to state and are sometimes part of a state’s laws regarding revenge pornography, blackmail, extortion, bribery, or cyberstalking and are prosecuted under those or other criminal offenses rather than as a specific offense called sextortion. These laws are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code—and are sometimes titled with descriptive names such as The Unlawful Disclosure or Promotion of Intimate Visual Material.

In California, sextortion is not recognized as a distinct criminal offense under a specific statute named 'sextortion.' However, such conduct is typically prosecuted under various existing laws that criminalize extortion, revenge pornography, and cybercrimes. Under California Penal Code Section 518, extortion involves the obtaining of property or other consideration from someone through the wrongful use of force or fear. If sextortion involves threatening to release explicit images, it could fall under California's revenge pornography laws, specifically Penal Code Section 647(j)(4), which makes it a crime to intentionally distribute images of another identifiable person's intimate body parts or sexual activity without consent and with the intent to cause emotional distress. Additionally, cyberstalking and cyberharassment statutes may also apply, depending on the circumstances of the case. These laws are designed to protect individuals from having their privacy violated and being coerced into providing something of value under threat of exposure.