The Impact of Technology-Facilitated Abuse on Victims of Domestic Violence

By: Cheyenne Taylor and Savannah Archer

Victims of domestic violence endure a high percentage of stalking and harassment victimization during and after a relationship ends. Beacon of Hope Crisis Center saw a 47% increase in victims who experienced stalking and harassment from 2020 to 2022. Specifically, technology-facilitated abuse has been on the rise. Victims have reported abusers tracking their phone activity and location through apps, tracking their physical location with the use of Tile Trackers and Apple Air Tags, improper use of other GPS devices, monitoring inside their homes with hidden cameras, misuse of doorbell cameras for surveillance, and other devices manipulated to perpetrate abuse. Our agency can now assist with checking a victim's vehicle for tracking devices; if found, that information can be reported and added to a protective order request for the court's consideration. We are also seeing victims report that abusers are using different apps to send messages when phone numbers or emails are blocked. Stalkers use apps such as social media platforms, banking, school sites, and other sites that don't always have traditional means of blocking content. Victim advocates complete training to help victims create technology and social media safety plans. There is no time to waste when it comes to securing accounts.

Technology abuse is prevalent in our increasingly digital society. When abusers cannot access victims in person, they often use technology to monitor, harass, and stalk the victims. This gives abusers more access to perpetrate harm without disrupting their own lives and responsibilities. In one study, the National Network to End Domestic Violence reported that 71% of abusers monitor victims’ device activities, and 54% download stalkerware onto their partners’ devices. It is debilitating for a victim's mental health and affects their ability to utilize technology how the average person does: to take a break from their stressors. When the victim spends significant time at home, like following a medical procedure, working remotely, or during a global pandemic, abuse can become more pervasive. Reports show that the pandemic increased the rate and severity of technology abuse experienced. The pandemic also impacted abusers’ free time due to the loss of employment and working from home, which allowed them to modify or explore technology in new ways to harm victims. Technology abuse has been on the rise, and as technology develops and changes, so will the methods that abusers use to cause digital harm. Commonly, technology abuse can look like tracking devices, harassing messages, demands for intimate pictures or photos, and publishing private information about the victim. Spoofing is another example of technological abuse where the abuser disguises their messages or phone number to impersonate someone or to get around blocked contact settings.

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We are focused on enhancing prevention and safety planning for all victims at risk of technology-facilitated abuse. Senate Bill 161 passed, and Indiana now has a new law, unlawful surveillance. This bill adds a prohibition against using a tracking device to the list of conditions a court may impose when issuing a protection order. It also increases the penalty for stalking to a Level 5 felony if the offense is committed using a tracking device. A person who knowingly or intentionally places a tracking device on an individual or the individual's property without the individual's knowledge or consent commits unlawful surveillance, a Class A misdemeanor, unless certain exceptions apply, and increases the penalty to a Level 6 felony if the person is the subject of a protective order or has certain prior convictions. This change in the legislature establishes sentence enhancement if a person uses a tracking device to commit or facilitate the commission of a crime. Beacon of Hope Crisis Center will continue to advocate for victims, adapt to the changing times, and request improvements in the legislature to hold abusers accountable.