The Government and Ofcom must go further in holding tech companies “legally responsible” for combatting misogyny online, the CEO of a domestic abuse charity in a new joint research report. .
The Dangerous by Design report from Refuge and the End Violence Against Women coalition (EVAW) reveals one in three women in the UK reported experiencing some form of online VAWG, rising to nearly half of women aged 16 to 24. A quarter of women reported having experienced online misogyny or sexual violence, the report revealed, while one in five reported experiencing harms suggestive of stalking, monitoring, harassment or coercive control.
Commenting on the findings of the survey, which was conducted amongst 2,000 women aged 16 and over, Gemma Sherrington (pictured), CEO of Refuge, said: “This report comes almost one year after Ofcom introduced its guidance for tech companies on how to tackle VAWG on online platforms. Despite being a welcome step forward, Refuge has long-been clear that voluntary guidance lacks the force needed to address the shocking levels of abuse and violence faced by women and girls online every day.
“Our report testifies to this, shining a light on the sheer scale of harm that women in this country are experiencing and the lack of confidence they have in tech companies, the criminal justice system, and policymakers to protect them. These findings are reflective of a system that has continued to prioritise profits over safety, leaving women to pay the price.
“This cannot continue. The government and Ofcom must go much further in holding tech companies legally responsible for combatting the normalisation of misogyny, holding perpetrators to account, and keeping all women and survivors safe.”
The report goes on to reveal more than half of LGBTQIA+ women reported experiencing online misogyny and sexual violence, including 18% who reported receiving threats of physical or sexual violence, while one in seven women stopped using online platforms because of the VAWG they experienced.
The report also raises concerns about the emergence of AI technologies and the information they provide. Almost half of the women surveyed use an AI chat system on a regular basis, rising to 80% of women aged 16-24, and one in six women in this age group say they have received dating, sex and relationships advice from an AI technology that they perceive to be inappropriate, unhealthy or unsafe. Of those surveyed, two thirds (66%) said they were concerned about the role of AI technologies in enabling VAWG, whilst the same again (66%) are not confident that the government is doing enough to regulate AI in the context of women’s safety.
In response to the findings, Refuge and EVAW are calling on the government to “go much further in tackling online abuse”, including making Ofcom’s guidance on VAWG legally enforceable, introducing mandatory Safety by Design standards for online services, and establishing robust AI regulation that prioritises the safety of women and girls.
Concluding, Janaya Walker, EVAW Interim Director, said: “All women and girls deserve to live free from violence and abuse. This report is a stark reminder of the ways in which online VAWG is a major feature of women’s everyday lives to devastating effect, particularly for young women. The status quo is untenable and the government’s efforts to prevent VAWG needs to confront the business model of big tech, with a regulatory system which has the teeth to hold them to account.
“A world in which such violence and abuse is routine carries wider consequences for society at large – for our relationships and gender equality, our sense of safety, and democracy. We urge the government to take this opportunity to reflect and change course.”
