You can sign Grazia X Refuge's petition, calling for tech companies to prioritise women's safety when designing new products, here.
When Lisa* broke up with her boyfriend he seemed to know where she would be at all times, and would frequently turn up to harass her. That’s because, unbeknown to her, he had installed spyware on her phone during their relationship so he could track her location at all times.
When Gemma* left her physically abusive boyfriend, he digitally stalked her through social media for years, which included contacting her friends, causing her to have anxiety and flashbacks.
It was stories like this that prompted Grazia to join forces with domestic abuse charity Refuge earlier this year in a bid to end digital stalking. We are calling on big technology firms to make their products safe by design, with the responsibility being placed on them and not on victims.
Last month, this wish looked a step closer when the Government announced that the Online Safety Bill – a proposed set of new laws designed to bring greater protections – would include guidance on reducing the risk of harm to women and girls.
It will place a new requirement on legislator Ofcom to publish guidance for tech companies to ensure they make online spaces safer for women. The news follows two years of campaigning by Refuge and campaign group End Violence Against Women to include a VAGW Code of Practice in the Bill, which would put the responsibilities on the tech companies to implement measures that would keep women safe.
Refuge says domestic abuse can look different compared to when the charity was founded in 1971, and technology has given perpetrators another tool with which to torment victims. Calls to the charity’s tech service (which helps victims of digital abuse) have risen by 258% between 2018 and 2022.
‘It happens across any device you can think of and takes many forms,’ says Jess Eagleton, the charity’s policy and public affairs manager, including harassment on social media, tracking devices like AirTags being placed on unknowing victims, bank cards being frozen, remote following of Ring video doorbells, and things like house alarms and even heating being remotely controlled.’
Many women told Grazia that when they reported abuse to the police, they were told to simply ‘come offline’. But the landscape is finally shifting so we need to keep pushing.
‘Until now, the Online Safety Bill made no reference to the abuse women experience day in day out online,’ says Ruth Davison, CEO of Refuge. ‘More than one in three women in the UK have experienced online abuse on social media or another online platform, that’s 11 million women,’ she says. ‘While we still need to see the detail on what exactly the amendment includes,’ adds Davison, ‘we are thrilled to see women and girls finally acknowledged and recognised within this Bill, which is groundbreaking.’
Call Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline (0808 2000 247) or visit refugetechsafety.org
*Names have been changed