08 / 12 / 2025
9 Minute Read

Doxxing : A common practice in the sex industry.

 

Since I've been evolving in this industry, I've encountered numerous independent escorts who have been victims of doxxing. Sometimes they're naive, sometimes they think they're in love with a client, sometimes they let their guard down towards a man who, until now, had always been very generous with them. But doxxing can also affect the client, when he hasn't been discreet enough about his private life, when he calls an escort from his home number, or when he visits one of these women on a street near his neighborhood.

 

What is doxxing?

Doxxing (also known as doxing) is the act of finding and publicly sharing someone’s private or identifying information (home address, phone number, workplace/school, family member’s name, personal email or social media accounts…) online without their consent, usually with the intent to harm, intimidate, or harass them.

Doxxing is a form of online abuse or revenge that can put someone at real-world risk because the intend is to expose their private info on the internet to hurt, scare, control, punish or blackmail them.

In the sex industry, this is unfortunately a very common practice, on both sides of the spectrum. Indeed, both the client and the escort can be a victim, and it is then very difficult to escape without social or psychological repercussions.

 

Doxxing : When the victim is the sex worker.

When you work as an escort in Switzerland and do your best to keep it secret, the worst thing that could happen is that it's leaked to your friends and family without your consent. This is what many women who are too casual about this industry and the people in it risk. The person who could doxxe you range from the owner of an escort agency to their co-workers (the other women who work with them), as well as their clients. And often, simply sharing your real name with the wrong person is enough to expose you to malicious individuals who could then expose you to the world. And if you're also active on social media, doxxing becomes easy for someone who knows your identity and wants to harm you.

Doxxing could come from the boss of the escort agency you are working for. Most of the time, the owner of an escort agency will have no reason to turn against you, as long as you remain respectful. However, many women who choose to steal clients from the agency, steal money from the agency, break their exclusivity contract, leave the agency abruptly without a word (even though they had booked appointments), or speak ill of the agency to competitors, expose themselves to potentially damaging repercussions. Therefore, it's essential to always maintain a professional attitude when you decide to work in the sex industry.

Doxxing could come from one of your coworkers. You thought you were friends; you quickly shared a lot about your life with her, and in the end, she knows more about you than you know about her. What's more, she's starting to be jealous because you earn more than she does. She knows you also work part-time as a sales assistant in a shop (because you want to keep your options "open" for the day you leave this industry) and knows your workplace because you told her... The need to connect with other women in the industry is a natural feeling but keep your distance. Real friendships in this industry are practically nonexistent. And the better you do, the more your colleagues will hate you... That's the reality of this industry, which quickly isolates sex workers. That's also why there's very little cohesion among those working in it.

Doxxing could also come from a close friend or family member you trusted completely, or even from an ex-boyfriend who couldn't accept the breakup. Jealousy and money are often the causes.

Most often, doxxing is initiated by a client who wants to harm a sex worker. Sometimes, he's never even met her because she may never have agreed to meet him. This is the case when an escort categorizes you as a "timewaster," for example. It can also happen when the encounter with the escort didn't go well, and the bad review left by the client on forums wasn't enough to tarnish the young woman's reputation. Doxxing can also be used by a client who has fallen in love with the escort, who doesn't want such a relationship. A client who has always been exemplary, even letting you enjoy FMTY encounters, is now being controlling and no longer wants to pay you for your time but still want to enjoying sex with you... This list of examples is not exhaustive, and I will never stop telling escorts to be very vigilant regarding the type of information they share with their clients and the level of closeness they choose to cultivate with them. Generally, doxxing will be initiated by a client who was initially very kind, almost the ideal customer...

The person doxxing you will for instance send emails to your parents, your university, your part-time job, revealing that you’re a sex worker and attaching screenshots of your online content (photos and videos published on escorts websites). As a result, you will face severe stigma, possible job loss, family rejection, legal or safety risks.

 

Doxxing : When it happens to a client.

I believe that when a client is the victim of doxxing, the damage is just as painful as when the target is an escort.

And if a man visits escorts in a country where prostitution is illegal or regulated by a jurisdiction that punishes the client, the social and psychological damage can be irreversible. In the United States, for example, independent escorts can ask clients to verify their identity by providing a valid ID or their LinkedIn profile. In seeking to protect themselves (from the police, from malicious men...), they force these potential clients to expose themselves to a girl they have never seen before. You can understand that the slightest misstep by the client (rightly or wrongly), the slightest upset from the escort (or the person managing her bookings), or the slightest conflict can expose this man.

His real name, job title, wife’s name, and workplace can then be posted on a public forum at any time. As a result, he may face public humiliation, problems at work, relationship breakdown, harassment or threats.

Even in countries like Switzerland where prostitution is legal, you're never completely safe from doxxing, especially if the escort doesn't live permanently in Switzerland. Calling her from your private number or emailing her from your personal address might be enough for her to investigate your identity. Your Swiss license plate is also a source of information that can be used to trace you, unless you've taken steps to make it inaccessible to the public. Finally, paying by credit/debit card or using Twint (a very popular contactless payment method in Switzerland) effectively eliminates your anonymity. So why would you freely share this information with a stranger who could, at any moment (herself or the pimp/loverboy she works for), turn against you? Why exposing yourself to stress, emotional and financial blackmailing that could result in doxxing and destroy your social and family life?

 

How should you protect yourself from doxxing?

Whether you are an escort or a client of escorts, you should protect yourself from doxxing because it doesn't just happen to other people. Here are some practical, simple, and easy-to-follow tips to minimize the chances of something like this happening to you.

Create a strict wall between your personal and escort/client identities. This means that you should use a different name, email address, and phone number only for work/only for dating escorts (since escorts generally have two phones, why shouldn't clients do the same?). Never connect work accounts to personal social media and avoid reusing usernames or photos from real-life accounts. Also, be careful when talking about your real city, school, or workplace. To avoid doxxing, don’t share anything too personal about yourself.

When it comes to protecting your digital traces, use VPN while working as an escort or when as a client, contacting an escort. Turning off location services and metadata on photos is a good idea too, while avoiding cloud accounts linked to your real name or phone number.

While some want to see cash disappear, it's still the best way to pay the company of an escort while remaining as discreet as possible. And even as an escort, you should always prioritize cash and never let a client book hotels and flights online for you. Either you make the online payment yourself after receiving the cash, or you request that the transfer be made to your PayPal account (the platform offers settings to limit your public visibility; your name is invisible to the person making the payment), or you go through a travel agency...yes, they still exist!

As an escort, it is your responsibility to be picky with the type of websites you choose to advertise on: opt for quality over quantity. Some will make doxxing easier than other. Choose sites with strong anti-piracy and blocking tools, always watermark your content with a stage name, set geographic blocks when available and immediately report leaks or stolen content.

Moreover, you should remember that doxxing happens when you don’t know how to handle obsessive or abusive clients. Therefore, I strongly recommend you not to engage emotionally with customers outside of your escort job (of course, exceptions exist, but they are extremely rare!). Block anyone who pressures for real identity details and keep screenshots of threatening messages as proof.

Whether you are an escort or a client of escorts, avoid telling even friends about the exact locations you are going to (except if you are an escort offering outcalls; in that case always make sure that at least one person knows where you are). Vary routines, when possible, to avoid patterns: Don't always work at the same location as an escort, don't always go and see the same girl as a client.

 

Doxxing : What to keep in mind.

I'll close this article by saying that, even with strong precautions, no strategy is 100% safe against doxxing. Both clients and escorts can become targets of doxxing, blackmail, or exposure — by scammers, angry partners, hackers, or even unethical platforms.

To reduce those risks, one should adopt strict privacy and digital-safety habits. These practices are about personal protection, not hiding wrongdoing. Remember that even small facts can be combined later to identify someone for doxxing. Clients who want to stay safe should respect boundaries and avoid getting pulled by an escort into personal or emotional entanglement.

Because doxxing affects both clients and sex workers — in many cases, the safest behavior is also the most ethical: Respect privacy (if you are meeting an escort, stick to friendly and non-intrusive conversations). Stay on secure platforms. Don’t ask for personal information. Don’t share or redistribute content.

Last but not least, doxxing is usually charged under laws related to harassment, stalking, threats, defamation, unauthorized data sharing, coercion/extortion or invasion of privacy. Although the law may not use the word “doxxing,” the behavior is commonly recognized as illegal and is considered a criminal offense in most countries.

 

Janet – The Velvet Rooms

 

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