CPWO responds to consultation from the Home Affairs Committee.

The Centre for Protecting Women Online (CPWO) developed and submitted an inter-disciplinary response to a consultation from the Home Affairs Committee regarding how governmental funding should be allocated in order to strengthen efforts in tackling Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). The Centre’s response included perspectives from law and policy, psychology, technology and AI, as well as policing. It highlighted key recommendations for the government, the importance of allocating funding and where it could be best used.

The Centre’s recommendations consisted of where and why funding was needed, and how it would accelerate progress in tackling and preventing Online Violence Against Women and Girls (OVAWG) but also supporting victims following said violence. It was recommended this could be done through legislation, training for police officers and effective reporting mechanisms for victims.

Importance of funding

Many forms of VAWG, such as stalking and harassment, are facilitated through online platforms. However, there is a significant lack of wide-scale research into OVAWG and its effects. The Four Nations Study is one of a few exceptions.

The Four Nation Study, conducted by Professor Olga Jurasz (CPWO), examined the scale, impact and societal attitudes towards TFGBV across the UK. This study found that in the United Kingdom, across the four nations, 1 in 10 women (15%) have experienced online violence, while 3 in 10 women (30%) have witnessed online violence. It also found that most incidents (82%) of online violence that women experienced in the 12 months preceding the survey were text-based while approximately a third were image-based (33%).

Wider-scale research in regard to OVAWG is scarce, yet it is where we can learn of a reliable prevalence and its effects. Having knowledge on the prevalence of OVAWG will allow for a better understanding of how best to prevent and minimise its effects. Mechanisms or strategies to prevent it and how to create effective support those who are affected by OVAWG will also be able to be developed as current legislation does not suffice. Research opportunities could additionally permit understanding of perpetrator profiles. This would enable proactive intervention, reducing online harms before they can occur.

Across law enforcement, including frontline officers, there appears to be a limited understanding of OVAWG and its impact. The lack of a coherent strategy or framework for officers to refer to, coupled with an emphasis on tackling offline harms, exposes a crucial gap in addressing OVAWG. Challenges stem from insufficient knowledge but equally from inadequate resources to effectively investigate online abuse. The police force and governmental departments lack proper training in order to support victims of OVAWG or to investigate them sufficiently, leaving victims without the support or justice they are entitled to.

The Four Nations Study found reluctance among victims due to a lack of confidence in the police responses. This furthers the police’s struggle to help tackle OVAWG. The Victims’ Commissioner found that only 13% of victims of online abuse were satisfied with the police response, while 45% were advised to remove themselves from online spaces rather than being offered meaningful intervention. The advice to remove oneself from online spaces highlights the lack of understanding within policing, and in itself is damaging to victims.

Allocating funding to departments, such as policing and governmental bodies, for enhanced digital investigative resources would offer crucial support to victims of OVAWG. Producing mandatory training for frontline officers is essential to reduce online violence and support its victims. Training will ensure that those assisting victims can effectively investigate OVAWG cases whilst guaranteeing suitable support. Furthermore, there are no established mechanisms for systematic reporting or data sharing between online platforms and law enforcement agencies. This absence hinders the police's ability to assess the severity of OVAWG and, in turn, impacts how these issues are addressed.

Key recommendations

Here are some of the key recommendations made by CPWO for the government:

• Investment in digital investigation capabilities is critical. Many survivors report that officers lack the knowledge and resources to investigate online abuse, leaving them without protection or legal recourse.
   
• The government needs to allocate more funding for large-scale research which is required in relation to OVAWG before effective policy measures and prevention mechanisms are devised. This research will also allow for a better understanding of perpetrators and how to prevent them from participating in online violence.
   
• Appropriate and effective trauma informed training must be funded and made mandatory across police and numerous governmental departments tackling OVAWG, including the Department of Justice, the Department for Education and the Home Office. Further, such training may also be desirable for capacity building for support organisations and NGOs. This will ensure that those dealing with victims of OVAWG can effectively identify, document, and investigate OVAWG cases.
   
• Civil society organisations (CSOs) fighting OVAWG need further funding to provide their ongoing support services such as helplines, toolkits, platforms and apps that enable them to provide their services. This ensures victims of OVAWG are sufficiently cared for.
   
• Reporting mechanisms and intelligence-sharing between police, online platforms, and support services must be strengthened through governmental funding. A formal process for reporting tech-facilitated abuse incidents from online platforms to law enforcement should be established.

The implementation of these recommendations would help create a safer and more inclusive online space for women.