FBI Milwaukee Warns Parents About Online Predators Targeting Children

FBI Milwaukee Public Affairs Officer Caroline Clancy (414) 489-3644 Share on X X.com Share on Facebook Facebook Email Email

April 22, 2026

Open Letter to Parents, Guardians, and Caregivers

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Over the course of the last few years, the FBI has observed a concerning increase in activity by online actors involved in predatory activity. These predators target children across the United States, including in Wisconsin. “764” is often used colloquially as a catch-all to describe these diffuse online networks.

These networks employ tactics described as Sadistic Online Exploitation (SOE). These predators seek out children online through mobile messaging apps, social media, and gaming platforms. After identifying a potential target these predators methodically attempt to befriend potential victims. This grooming process often includes the predator establishing a trusting or romantic relationship with the victim. The goal of the relationship is to allow the predator to manipulate and threaten the child into producing and sharing child sexual abuse material (CSAM), acts of animal cruelty, self-harm, or violence.

However, not all of these predators follow the same ideology, but they seek out young people. Predators may be engaging in criminal activity for sexual gratification, social status, a sense of belonging, or for a mix of other reasons.

Regardless of motivation, the FBI takes each case seriously and works with its law enforcement partners, both domestic and foreign, to ensure offenders are held accountable.

Potential signs of victimization include:

• Sudden behavior changes such as becoming withdrawn, moody, or irritable
• Changes in appearance, including neglect of appearance or hiding specific body parts
• Signs of animal cruelty
• Unexplained harm to younger siblings
• Threatening to commit suicide and openly talking about death, "not being wanted or needed," or "not being around"
• Scars, often in patterns, including signs or names from online platforms
• Fresh cuts, scratches, bruises, bite marks, burns, or other wounds
• Reports of personally identifying information being posted online for victimization (commonly referred to as a "dox")

• Sudden and unexplained gifts or packages arriving for the child to the home
  Here’s a list of tips to help protect your children:

• Monitor your child’s online activities, especially with whom they may be communicating and make use of parental controls.

• Exercise discretion when posting personal information, videos, and photos online, especially content that includes information about your children which could be exploited.

• Exercise caution when accepting friend requests, engaging in video calls, and sending images to individuals you do not know personally.

• Talk to your children about the risks of sharing personal information, images, and videos online.
  If you or someone you know is a victim of a crime using these kinds of tactics, retain all information from the incident such as usernames, email addresses, websites, and names of platforms used, and immediately report it to:

• 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or tips.fbi.gov

• FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov
  If anyone feels they are in imminent danger, contact local law enforcement immediately.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) provides a free service known as Take It Down, which helps minor victims, or adults who were victimized as minors, with removing or stopping the online sharing of nude and sexually explicit content taken while under 18 years old. For more information, visit https://takeitdown.ncmec.org.

You can find additional helpful tips here: https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/parents-and-caregivers-protecting-your-kids

The threats your children face online are real and growing. But with awareness, vigilance, and cooperation, we can stop these predators before they cause harm. The FBI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to combat violent crime and those who seek to exploit children.

Respectfully,

Alan Karr
Special Agent in Charge