Key facts
- A report by Refuge and End Violence Against Women (EVAW) states that police and social platforms are failing women who experience online abuse.
- Many women reported insensitive, victim-blaming, or misogynistic responses from police.
- Tech companies often failed to take adequate action on complaints of online abuse.
- 17% of women who complained to the police did not have their cases investigated.
- 47% of surveyed women aged 16-24 experienced violence online, including misogyny, sexual violence, image-based abuse, and doxing.
- Ofcom has launched voluntary guidance for tech companies on tackling violence against women and girls.
A report by Refuge and End Violence Against Women (EVAW) highlights significant failures by both police and social media platforms in addressing online abuse against women. The report details how victims often face insensitive and victim-blaming responses from law enforcement, with one woman, identified as Jane, recalling being warned that researching where her intimate photos had been shared might put her at risk of breaking the law. After being given an internet safety leaflet and told to expect little from tech companies, her case was closed.
Jane's experience, which included her Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat accounts being hacked and intimate images extracted from private messages, led to her feeling exposed, harassed, and stalked. Commenters on the platform where the images were posted left derogatory messages, and personal data was used to contact her directly. This distressing experience has caused many women, like Jane, to move more of their lives offline.
The report notes that for many women, abuse and harassment online have become an 'accepted risk' of participating in online spaces, despite Ofcom introducing voluntary guidance for tech companies a year ago. Jane, disheartened by the reporting process, appointed law firm Leigh Day, which successfully pushed for Ofcom to open a formal investigation into the platforms and for the police to reopen their criminal investigation, though clarity and transparency on the progress remain limited.
Perpetrators' ability to conceal their locations globally poses a challenge, but Jane argues this is no different from other online crimes like terrorism. The Refuge and EVAW report found that most women do not report their experiences, and when they do, the response is often poor, with complaints misunderstood or not taken seriously. Many are advised to change their own behavior, and action is either not taken or is too slow.
A survey of 2,000 women for the report revealed that 17% of those who complained to the police did not have their cases investigated. Nearly half (47%) of surveyed women aged 16-24 had experienced violence online, with one in four experiencing misogyny or sexual violence. Other reported experiences included stalking (one in five), image-based abuse (18%), and doxing (9%). Nearly one in three women of all ages were affected, and one in seven left social media platforms as a result. For 15% of respondents, the abuse led to suicidal feelings.
Additionally, the research found that one in six women aged 16-24 received dating, sex, and relationship advice from AI chatbots that they considered inappropriate or unsafe. Gemma Sherrington, chief executive of Refuge, stated that while Ofcom's guidance is a step forward, the regulator must hold tech companies legally responsible and empower Ofcom to take swifter, more robust enforcement actions. The report also calls for enhanced tech abuse training for police and prosecutors, a new online safety commission, ringfenced funding for specialist services, and stronger enforcement powers for Ofcom.
An Ofcom spokesperson affirmed that tackling harms disproportionately faced by women and girls online is a top priority. They highlighted that tech firms must remove illegal content when aware of it and are cracking down on the spread of illegal intimate images. Ofcom is also investigating three services for suspected failures to prevent individuals from encountering illegal content.