Idaho Extortion Laws: Theft by Extortion, Blackmail and Penalties

Blackmail is a crime in Idaho, but Idaho has no offense named blackmail, and its general extortion crime is a form of theft. Since 1981, extortion has been one of the ways of committing theft: Idaho Code 18-2403(2)(e) defines obtaining property by extortion, and 18-2407 makes property obtained by extortion grand theft "regardless of its nature and value." The penalty under 18-2408 is 1 to 20 years in prison for threats of injury, property damage or abuse of public office, and 1 to 14 years for the other listed threats, which include exposing a secret.

Information last verified on October 17, 2026. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Idaho's theft-by-extortion provisions (Idaho Code 18-2401, 18-2403(2)(e), 18-2407, 18-2408 and 18-2409), the libel-threat misdemeanor (18-4809), video voyeurism (18-6605) and the explicit synthetic media statute (18-6606), with short pointers to sexual exploitation of a child (18-1507), attempts (18-306) and the default penalties (18-112, 18-113). It does not cover what to do if you are being threatened or how to get images taken down (see our sextortion scams guide), the sharing of intimate images as its own crime (see revenge porn laws by state), federal offenses (covered on our extortion and blackmail laws by state hub), or city and county ordinances.

What is extortion in Idaho?

Idaho folds extortion into a single theft offense. Idaho Code 18-2401(1) states that "Conduct denominated theft in this chapter constitutes a single offense superceding the separate offenses previously known as embezzlement, extortion, false pretenses, cheats, misrepresentations, larceny and receiving stolen goods."

Section 18-2403(2)(e) then defines theft "By extortion":

"A person obtains property by extortion when he compels or induces another person to deliver such property to himself or to a third person by means of instilling in him a fear that, if the property is not so delivered, the actor or another will" do one of nine listed acts.

Although extortion is part of the theft offense, it must be charged and proved as extortion. Under 18-2409(1), where an element of the crime charged is that property was "obtained by extortion," the charging document "must so specify," and under 18-2409(2) a charge of theft by extortion "must be supported by proof establishing theft by extortion."

Is blackmail a separate crime in Idaho?

No. Idaho's criminal code has no offense named blackmail. Blackmail is the everyday word for threatening someone to get money or property, which Idaho charges as theft by extortion when the threat is one on the 18-2403(2)(e) list. Idaho also has a narrow misdemeanor for threatening to publish a libel with intent to extort, covered below.

Idaho extortion penalties

The grand theft penalties come from Idaho Code 18-2408. Section 18-2408(1) makes grand theft committed in a manner described in 18-2407(1)(a) "a felony punishable by fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or imprisonment in the state prison for not less than one (1) year nor more than twenty (20) years, or by both such fine and imprisonment." Section 18-2408(2)(a) makes grand theft under 18-2407(1)(b)5. "a felony punishable by a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by imprisonment in the state prison for not less than one (1) year nor more than fourteen (14) years, or by both such fine and imprisonment." The upper figures are statutory maximums, not the sentence a court imposes in a given case.

Is extortion a felony in Idaho?

Yes, when it is charged as theft by extortion. Section 18-2407(1)(b)5. makes it grand theft when "The property, regardless of its nature and value, is obtained by extortion," and 18-2407(1)(a) does the same for extortion by threats of injury, property damage or public-office abuse. So a small demand and a large one carry the same grade. The value tiers that apply to other theft do not set the grade here; for those, see our Idaho theft laws page. The libel-threat offense in 18-4809 and the misdemeanor tier of 18-6606 are misdemeanors, punishable under 18-113 by up to 6 months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

Idaho Code 18-306 punishes an attempt to commit a crime that fails, "where no provision is made by law for the punishment of such attempts." Where the offense attempted carries prison and a fine, the attempt may be punished by up to one-half the longest prison term and one-half the largest fine for the completed offense: for attempted theft by extortion, up to 10 years and $5,000 for the 18-2408(1) threats, and up to 7 years and $2,500 for the others.

What kinds of threats count?

Under 18-2403(2)(e), the fear must be that, if the property is not delivered, "the actor or another will":

1. "Cause physical injury to some person in the future."
2. "Cause damage to property."
3. "Engage in other conduct constituting a crime."
4. "Accuse some person of a crime or cause criminal charges to be instituted against him."
5. "Expose a secret or publicize an asserted fact, whether true or false, tending to subject some person to hatred, contempt or ridicule."
6. "Cause a strike, boycott or other collective labor group action injurious to some person's business; except that such a threat shall not be deemed extortion when the property is demanded or received for the benefit of the group in whose interest the actor purports to act."
7. "Testify or provide information or withhold testimony or information with respect to another's legal claim or defense."
8. "Use or abuse his position as a public servant by performing some act within or related to his official duties, or by failing or refusing to perform an official duty, in such manner as to affect some person adversely."
9. "Perform any other act which would not in itself materially benefit the actor but which is calculated to harm another person materially with respect to his health, safety, business, calling, career, financial condition, reputation or personal relationships."

Items 1, 2 and 8 are the threats that carry the 20-year maximum under 18-2407(1)(a). Item 5 covers an asserted fact "whether true or false," so the truth of the information does not take a threat outside it. The list does not name a person's immigration status as a separate kind of threat.

Threats to report a crime, sue, or go public

The extortion paragraph, 18-2403(2)(e), writes in one exception, for item 6: a threat of a strike, boycott or other collective labor action "shall not be deemed extortion when the property is demanded or received for the benefit of the group in whose interest the actor purports to act." The paragraph itself sets out no other exception.

The list does not use the word lawsuit. The nearest items are item 7, on testifying or withholding testimony or information "with respect to another's legal claim or defense," and item 9, on any act "calculated to harm another person materially" with respect to the listed interests, which include reputation, career and financial condition. Item 5 covers threats to "publicize an asserted fact, whether true or false." Whether a particular demand falls within the statute is a question for a lawyer licensed in Idaho.

Separately, Idaho Code 18-4809 makes it a misdemeanor for "Every person who threatens another to publish a libel concerning him, or any parent, husband, wife, or child of such person, or member of his family, and every person who offers to prevent the publication of any libel upon another person, with intent to extort any money or other valuable consideration from any person."

Sextortion in Idaho

Idaho has no criminal offense named sextortion or sexual extortion. Several provisions reach parts of the conduct.

Fabricated sexual images. Idaho Code 18-6606, added in 2024, makes it a crime when a person knowingly "Possesses and threatens to disclose explicit synthetic media with the intent to obtain money or other valuable consideration from an identifiable person portrayed in whole or in part in the explicit synthetic media." For this section, "Valuable consideration" "includes but is not limited to sexually explicit images or video from the identifiable individual portrayed in the synthetic media" (18-6606(4)(h)). The offense is a misdemeanor, and under 18-6606(3) a felony "punishable by imprisonment for a period no more than ten (10) years, or by a fine of no more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), or by both" when the identifiable person is under 18, or when the person had previously been found guilty of a violation of the section or a similar statute within the past five years. Section 18-6606 covers synthetic media; it was amended in 2026 (2026 Idaho Session Laws, ch. 121). Threats involving real images fall under 18-6605, below.

Threats to share real intimate images. As amended effective July 1, 2026 (2026 Idaho Session Laws, ch. 121), Idaho Code 18-6605(3)(a) makes it video voyeurism when a person, "with the intent to annoy, terrify, threaten, intimidate, harass, offend, humiliate or degrade," intentionally disseminates, publishes or sells, "or threatens or conspires to disseminate, publish or sell," an image of an identifiable person whose intimate areas are exposed or who is engaged in a sexual act, where the person knew or reasonably should have known that the person depicted understood the image should remain private and did not consent. It is a felony (18-6605(4)), punishable under 18-112 by up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $50,000, or both.

Where the person targeted is a child. Idaho Code 18-1507(2)(b) makes it sexual exploitation of a child to knowingly and willfully cause, induce or permit a child to engage in, or be used for, any explicit sexual conduct for the purpose of producing or making sexually exploitative material. It is a felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison, a fine of up to $50,000, or both (18-1507(4)).

Theft by extortion. Where a threat on the 18-2403(2)(e) list is used to compel or induce someone to deliver property, the conduct falls within theft by extortion, graded as grand theft regardless of value.

A legislative study. In 2026 the Idaho Legislature adopted House Concurrent Resolution 33, which charges an interim committee to "undertake and complete a study of the crime of sextortion, means of prevention, and the effects on its victims, in particular those victims under 18 years of age, and to make recommendations regarding ways to strengthen current statutes." The resolution is a study, not a new crime.

If you or someone you know is being threatened with the release of images, our sextortion scams guide covers reporting and takedown steps. For more on Idaho's rules on fabricated images, see Idaho deepfake laws, and for image-sharing crimes nationwide, revenge porn laws by state. Schemes that obtain money by deception rather than threat are covered on our Idaho scam and fraud laws page.

Recent changes

• 2026: House Bill 727 (2026 Idaho Session Laws, ch. 121), effective July 1, 2026, amended the video voyeurism felony in 18-6605, which now covers threatening to disseminate, publish or sell a real intimate image, and revised the penalty provision of 18-6606 on explicit synthetic media. The legislature also adopted House Concurrent Resolution 33, setting up the interim study of sextortion described above.
• 2024: Idaho Code 18-6606 was added (2024 Idaho Session Laws, ch. 105), including the possess-and-threaten offense in subsection (1)(c).
• 2017: Idaho Code 18-2403, which contains the extortion definition, was last amended (2017 Idaho Session Laws, ch. 215). The extortion grading sections, 18-2407 and 18-2408, were last amended in 2002.

Federal law

Federal law also reaches interstate threats and extortion, separately from Idaho's statutes; our extortion laws hub covers the federal offenses.

Related pages

• Extortion and blackmail laws by state
• Idaho theft laws
• Idaho deepfake laws
• Idaho scam and fraud laws
• Sextortion scams: what to do

This article provides general legal information about Idaho criminal statutes as of October 17, 2026. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Idaho.

Last updated: October 17, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is blackmail illegal in Idaho?

Idaho's code has no crime named blackmail. Compelling or inducing someone to deliver property by instilling fear of a listed act, such as exposing a secret or publicizing an asserted fact, true or false, is theft by extortion under Idaho Code 18-2403(2)(e), graded as grand theft regardless of value.

Is extortion a felony in Idaho?

Yes. Under 18-2407, property obtained by extortion is grand theft regardless of value. Under 18-2408, the penalty is 1 to 20 years and up to a $10,000 fine for threats of future injury, property damage or public-office abuse, and 1 to 14 years and up to a $5,000 fine for the other listed threats. A failed attempt is punishable under 18-306 by up to one-half the prison term and fine for the completed offense.

Is threatening to reveal a secret extortion in Idaho?

Item 5 of Idaho Code 18-2403(2)(e) lists a threat to expose a secret or publicize an asserted fact, whether true or false, tending to subject some person to hatred, contempt or ridicule. Property obtained by instilling fear of that act is theft by extortion, punishable by 1 to 14 years, a fine of up to $5,000, or both (18-2408(2)(a)).

Is it extortion in Idaho to threaten to report someone to police unless they pay?

The list in 18-2403(2)(e) includes a threat to accuse some person of a crime or cause criminal charges to be instituted. The only exception written into that paragraph concerns collective labor action for the group's benefit. How the statute applies to a specific demand is a question for an Idaho lawyer.

Is sextortion a crime in Idaho?

Idaho has no offense named sextortion. Since July 1, 2026, Idaho Code 18-6605 makes it felony video voyeurism to threaten to disseminate, publish or sell a real image of an identifiable person whose intimate areas are exposed or who is engaged in a sexual act, with intent to annoy, terrify, threaten, intimidate, harass, offend, humiliate or degrade, where the image was meant to stay private and the person did not consent. Idaho Code 18-6606(1)(c) covers possessing and threatening to disclose explicit synthetic media to obtain money or other valuable consideration, including sexually explicit images, from the person portrayed; it is a misdemeanor, or a felony of up to 10 years when that person is under 18 or the offender had previously been found guilty of a similar violation within the past five years. A threat on the 18-2403(2)(e) list used to obtain property is theft by extortion. Where the person targeted is a child, causing or inducing the child to engage in explicit sexual conduct to produce sexually exploitative material is sexual exploitation of a child under 18-1507, a felony of up to 30 years.

Is threatening to publish false or damaging statements a crime in Idaho?

Idaho Code 18-4809 makes it a misdemeanor to threaten to publish a libel concerning another person or a family member, or to offer to prevent its publication, with intent to extort money or other valuable consideration. Under 18-113, a misdemeanor is punishable by up to 6 months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.