Cyber-violence : digital abuse in the context of domestic violence

While considerable attention has been given to various cybercrimes, such as hacking, identity theft, and online fraud, less focus has been given to the issue of technology-facilitated abuse between current and former intimate partners (‘cyber-violence’). The term cyber-violence refers to repeated abuse committed by one person (the abuser) against a current or former intimate partner through the use of digital technology.1 It includes a range of controlling and coercive behaviours, such as threatening phone calls, cyber-stalking, location tracking via smartphones, harassment on social media sites,2 and the dissemination of intimate images of partners without consent (‘revenge porn’).