Refuge highlights extent of tech abuse
Abuse through technology was a factor in the lives of 72% of the women who last year used the services of support charity Refuge.
Tech abuse includes:
• victims receiving persistent telephone calls from the perpetrator;
• victims being targeted via social media, perhaps via the perpetrator creating fake accounts to harass them;
• perpetrators logging into online storage to monitor messages;
• perpetrators impersonating the victim’s online identity;
• spyware being installed in the victim’s homes;
• perpetrators putting recording devices inside children’s toys;
• and perpetrators attaching GPS trackers to cars.
So Refuge has launched an online chatbot to provide safe and accessible information to women experiencing abuse through technology to help save and change lives, and empower women to ensure their devices are safe, said Refuge’s chief executive officer Sandra Horley.
