From hiding spycams in children’s toys to coercing partners into online sex work on platforms such as OnlyFans, abusers are increasingly weaponising technology to perpetrate new and insidious forms of violence against women and girls (VAWG).
One in three women in the UK has experienced online abuse or harassment, with almost one in five of them reporting that the perpetrator was a partner or former partner, according to research we at Refuge, the UK’s largest specialist domestic abuse charity, carried out in 2021. For young women, the scale of the abuse was even higher, with two in three reporting online abuse or harassment.
Perpetrators of domestic abuse often use technology to extend existing patterns of coercive control. Location-tracking tools, instant messaging, and social media have made it easier than ever to monitor, harass and intimidate partners or ex-partners under the guise of ‘normal’ online behaviour. We’re increasingly seeing the use of stalkerware, hidden trackers and social media ‘maps’ to surveil survivors – part of a broader pattern of control over what survivors do and who they see.
