Digital safety

Women’s Aid (England) research on online domestic abuse found that:

For 85% of respondents the abuse they received online from a partner or ex-partner was part of a pattern of abuse they also experienced offline.
Nearly a third of respondents (29%) experienced the use of spyware or GPS locators on their phone or computers by a partner or ex-partner.
For half (50%) of respondents the online abuse they experienced also involved direct threats to them or someone they knew.
Nearly a third of those respondents who had received threats stated that where threats had been made online by a partner or ex-partner they were carried out.

Change your passwords
Set up two factor authentications on all devices and accounts
Turn off tracking options on apps. Do this for your and your children’s devices
Check your email accounts for any pre-set forwarding email address
If safe reset your phone to factory settings. Do not forget to backup your contacts, images, messages etc before doing this
Keep a record of any messages, email etc from your abuser
In high risk situations avoid Social Media where possible
Discuss online safety with your children

Refuge in England have developed a dedicated website to help keep you safe online.

There are lots of helpful tips and interactive tools to use to help you secure your technology.

Digital Safety