Tech-facilitated Abuse, Real-world Harm: Reflections from the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)
Tech‑facilitated violence is not a niche or purely technical issue. Its impact reaches far beyond the screen, disproportionately affecting women and girls—posing serious threats to their safety, well‑being, and freedom.
Laws are an essential starting point for addressing this form of violence, but meaningful change requires coordinated action across governments, technology companies, civil society, and communities.
In March 2026, during the world’s largest annual gathering on gender equality: the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), Oxfam Ireland and our ReCIPE project partners cohosted a virtual parallel event titled “Tech-facilitated Abuse, Real-world Harm: Rethinking Pathways to Digital Justice.” The panel featured speakers from Fundacion InternetBolivia.org, the Somali Women Education Centre, and Oxfam in Uganda.
Participants from around the world joined to explore insights shaped by survivors’ experiences and to discuss what civil society leaders, policymakers, and technologists can do to advance gender justice in an increasingly digital world.
Below are three key takeaways from the discussion.
Watch the full recording of the session here.
First, tech-facilitated violence has real-world consequences.
“It’s important to understand that digital violence is not simply an online problem. It has real consequences.”
Violence enabled by digital technologies—including cyberstalking, online harassment, and non-consensual sharing of intimate images—often spills into survivors’ offline lives. Panelists highlighted that tech-facilitated violence is not only common, but can also be targeted, coordinated, and cumulative, particularly against women and gender-diverse people involved in activism or public life.
The effects are profound: survivors may face psychological distress, fear, reputational damage, and withdrawal from online participation, which limits their ability to speak openly or safely exercise their rights in digital spaces.
Continued documentation and analysis of these harms are essential for filling data gaps and providing evidence that strengthens national and international responses to tech-facilitated gender-based violence.
Second, effective responses to tech-facilitated violence must be grounded in survivors’ experiences.
“The voices women and girls have hardly been heard, and this needs to change for responses to tech-facilitated violence to be meaningful.”
Despite its seriousness, responses to tech‑facilitated violence remain fragmented and often disconnected from what survivors actually need.
Panellists emphasized that survivors’ voices must be treated not as anecdotal but as essential evidence for shaping effective solutions.
They highlighted several priorities:
- Support systems must address both physical and psychological needs, especially for women facing intersecting vulnerabilities such as poverty.
- Existing laws on sexual violence and privacy should be applied where appropriate, but must also be reviewed to ensure they reflect today’s digital realities.
- Personnel in public and non‑profit sectors must receive training to support survivors with sensitivity, emotional care, and an understanding of digital harms.
- Culturally relevant digital literacy programs are vital so women and gender minorities understand their digital rights and know how to seek help.
- Public awareness campaigns can challenge the social norms and attitudes that enable online abuse.
Third, access to digital justice requires a multistakeholder approach.
“We need everyone – policymakers, different government departments, tech companies and gender champions – to assume greater responsibility in preventing digital violence.”
We are living through a remarkable moment as digital technologies become increasingly accessible. This creates real possibilities for expanding women’s access to justice, but access alone is not empowerment.
As one participant noted, "access to justice means more than just a court date; it is about a system that actually understands how digital harm operates and works to prevent it."
Panellists agreed that this requires robust multistakeholder governance, where diverse experts and communities shape policies, norms and standards for equality and non-discrimination in the digital age. All stakeholders must prioritize human rights from the outset, ensuring that marginalised people are not exposed to new forms of risk and harm.
As digital technologies become more embedded in daily life, ensuring access and expansion of justice for women, girls and other gendered minorities requires collective participation and accountability. This was acknowledged in the Agreed Conclusions of the CSW70, which commit to developing and enforcing human rights-based frameworks for digital justice—including data protection, transparency, and algorithmic accountability.
Coordinated global action is essential to ensuring effective prevention and protection across borders.
Oxfam Ireland urges all governments and stakeholders to unite behind this crucial call to action. The true measure of progress will be whether these commitments contribute to a safer online space for all. We will continue to amplify the voices and knowledge of the feminist activists and affected communities we work with; standing with them against tech-facilitated gender-based violence.