"Read this if…" the harm you are facing includes phones, social media, tracking apps, leaked images, or online threats — and you need to know that digital abuse is GBV, not a separate lesser category.
Digital abuse uses technology to monitor, humiliate, threaten, or control someone. It often continues harm started in person — or makes leaving harder because the abuser can reach you anywhere.
In gender-based violence, digital tactics frequently target privacy, sexuality, and reputation — especially against women, girls, and LGBTQ+ people.
Forms of digital abuse in GBV
Digital abuse can include:
- constant messaging — hundreds of texts, demands for instant replies
- location tracking — shared apps used as surveillance, not safety
- demanding passwords to email, banking, or social accounts
- revenge porn — sharing intimate images or threatening to
- outing someone's sexuality or gender identity without consent
- doxxing — publishing address, workplace, or children's school
- spyware on phones or laptops
- impersonation — posting as you to damage relationships or employment
- online stalking after separation
None of this is "just online drama" when fear follows you home.
Why digital abuse matters in GBV
Abusers use technology because it:
- creates proof of compliance (read receipts, location on)
- humiliates at scale — family, colleagues, and community may see
- makes victims feel they can never escape the person's reach
- gathers material for blackmail
Leaving a house does not end digital access if accounts are shared or devices are compromised.
Warning signs
You may be experiencing digital abuse if someone:
- punishes you for not answering quickly
- insists on video calls to "check" where you are
- sends sexual content you did not ask for and expects reciprocation
- threatens to leak photos if you leave or tell anyone
- monitors your followers, likes, or DMs
- creates fake accounts to harass you after you block them
See also Cyberbullying: What Is It, and What Can You Do? for general online harm — GBV adds intimate access and home consequences.
Immediate digital safety steps
If you suspect monitoring:
- use a safe device — library, trusted friend, work computer — for help searches
- change passwords from that safe device; use an email the abuser does not know
- review logged-in sessions on social accounts and revoke unknown devices
- turn off location sharing on apps you did not choose to share
- avoid discussing escape plans on devices or accounts they may access
Document threats — screenshots stored where the abuser cannot find them. See Leaving Safely.
Reporting and evidence
- platform reporting tools for harassment and non-consensual images
- police when threats include violence, blackmail, or child exploitation
- preserve evidence before blocking — dates, usernames, URLs
Laws vary. In South Africa, image-based abuse and harassment may have criminal and civil routes — ask Finding Trusted Support for GBV for specialist guidance.
For parents and schools
Teen dating violence often lives on phones first. Take digital harm seriously when:
- a young person panics at notifications
- a partner demands constant access
- sexual images are circulating
Final thought
Digital abuse is not less real because it happens through a screen. In GBV it is often the thread that keeps control alive.
Name it. Document it. Secure your devices. And reach help that understands both the online and the home.