Strategies used to tackle technology-facilitated abuse in the domestic violence context

Recently, Australian governments have given considerable attention to developing strategies to tackle domestic violence. In recognition of the heavy dependency on digital communication devices in contemporary society, some of the initiatives have recognised the rise of technology-facilitated domestic violence ('cyber-violence'). This includes behaviours such as threatening phone calls, cyber-stalking, location tracking via smartphones, harassment on social media sites, and the dissemination of intimate images of partners without consent ('revenge porn'). However, cyber-violence has not received adequate attention throughout Australia and there is currently only a patchwork of inconsistent laws that are often inadequate. This presentation seeks to discuss the phenomenon of technology-facilitated abuse in the domestic violence context and elaborates on the article, 'Technology-facilitated abuse: The new breed of domestic violence' (Al-Alosi, 2017). In 2018, it is timely and necessary to reflect on the success and failures of strategies implemented since to tackle cyber-violence.