In today's world of smartphones and social media, technology-facilitated abuse has become one of the fastest-growing forms of abuse, and also one that is poorly understood. According to the e-Safety Commissioner, 4 in 5 Australian women have experienced or are experiencing some form of technology-facilitated abuse, while a recent NSW Crime Commission report found that one in four people who purchased GPS tracking devices since 2023 have a history of domestic violence.

In July, Kylea and her team brought together a roundtable of over 40 women's safety frontline workers, peak bodies, public sector leaders and other experts to unpack what is happening in this space, discussing possible preventative measures and finding more ways we can protect vulnerable Australians from harm.

“The clear message I have heard from victim-survivors, service providers, researchers and first responders is that technology-facilitated abuse is widespread, rapidly growing, not well understood across the community, and overlooked by policymakers. We need to act now to stop this growing issue escalating further,” Kylea says. 

“Australia cannot tackle domestic and family violence if we do not tackle technology-facilitated abuse. Most people now presenting to a domestic violence service have some sort of surveillance technology attached to them. Some services say it is 100 per cent. It’s time for all levels of government around the country to come together and develop a national approach to tackling technology-facilitated abuse.”

A report with findings and recommendations is now available for download. Outlined are 12 recommendations that Kylea will push both the Albanese government and the Coalition to agree to as part of a nationally coordinated approach to tackling the rising threat of technology-facilitated abuse.