Suffolk domestic abuse charity warns: everyday tech being used to track victims
The domestic abuse charity Leeway says we need to stay on top of how technology is being used negatively.
A Suffolk-based domestic abuse charity says smart devices like Ring doorbells and Apple AirTags are increasingly being misused by abusers to track and control their victims.
Rhys Lloyd, Communications Officer at Leeway, says:
"It's sadly not a new issue. We're increasingly finding that perpetrators are using whatever avenue is available to them to continue to exert their power and control in their relationships. And technology is such a big factor nowadays… it goes kind of beyond social media as well."
He warns the issue isn't limited to online platforms:
"It's things like smart technology as well, things like Ring doorbells."
Rhys believes some of the responsibility may lie with how these products are sold:
"I can understand it, perhaps from a business perspective, if someone's managing a series of cars, but I think perhaps that should be again more stringently checked and prevent people from buying them for perhaps personal use."
Ultimately, he says, it’s about safeguarding victims in their day-to-day lives:
"There's no kind of real easy way around this… It's about trying to do whatever we can to reassure people and make them feel as confident going about their everyday life and also safe."
Leeway also welcomed changes to how domestic abuse is being measured.
"The Office of National Statistics are changing the way they're capturing information around domestic abuse… they're expecting that there will probably be about two million more people experiencing domestic abuse that have previously not been considered."
Rhys says part of this change includes a shift in focus:
"There's a lot more questions around some of the more controlling aspects of domestic abuse… things like checking your partner's bank records or checking through their phone… behaviours that people might just think is almost normal in a relationship, but actually isn't."
"It is positive that it does seem like more people are slowly realising that domestic abuse goes beyond that kind of physical violence… but perhaps with the subtle forms and those controlling behaviours it can take people longer to get support."
With funding for support services a continuing concern, Rhys adds:
"We know funding around domestic abuse services is always such a hot topic… I think it’ll be really interesting to see how that data is used and what kind of information comes from it."