Tackling digital violence against women in the criminal procedure and support services

The digitalization and the development of communication technologies have changed the forms and consequences of violence against women. Intimate partner violence and post-separation stalking as well as harassment, threats and hate speech are increasingly happening online and through technology. Smartphones, computers, social media services and email are increasingly used as instruments of violence in partner abuse for threatening and controlling. In addition, women who are vocal on the internet experience systematic harassment, disgracing and threatening. The significance of the change is reflected in GREVIO's recent recommendations on the "digital dimension" of violence against women.
Our study is a part of the “The challenges of tackling digital violence against women in police work, the criminal procedure, and support services” research project funded by Finnish government. The data consists of interviews conducted in 2022-2023 with prosecutors and representatives of support services. In the study we have analyzed the challenges and possibilities of addressing digital violence and the conceptions of the digital violence as a phenomenon and crime. The information produced in the research can be used in the in-service training of prosecutors and support services to identify, record, document, intervene and investigate digital violence more thoroughly, disseminate good practices, develop the service system, and support victims of digital violence.