Unite to End Digital Violence: Why Online Safety is a Gender Justice Imperative

For many women and girls, the simple vibration of a phone can trigger a visceral fear. It might be a threatening message from an ex-partner, a harassing comment from a stranger, or a chilling ultimatum that private images will be published unless demands are met. The digital world, often hailed as a space for liberation and connection, has become a primary battleground for gender-based violence. This isn’t just “online drama”—it’s a pervasive, escalating crisis with severe real-world consequences, fundamentally rooted in gender inequality. Achieving true online safety is not a niche tech concern; it is a non-negotiable prerequisite for gender justice.

Introduction: The Inescapable Reality of Digital Violence

The promise of the internet as an equalizer has been undermined by a surge in tech-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV). This form of abuse uses digital tools—social media, messaging apps, email, and increasingly, artificial intelligence—to stalk, harass, threaten, silence, and exploit women and girls. The harm is profound: psychological trauma, reputational ruin, economic exclusion, and forced withdrawal from public and digital life. Unlike offline violence, TFGBV can be perpetrated across distances, anonymously, and with an audience of millions, amplifying the terror and the damage. Addressing this crisis requires understanding it not as an isolated “cyber” problem, but as a direct extension of offline misogyny, demanding integrated, systemic solutions.

Key Points: Understanding the Crisis and the Path Forward

• TFGBV is a severe form of gender-based violence: It includes non-consensual sharing of intimate images (revenge porn), cyberstalking, online harassment, doxing, and AI-generated deepfake abuse. The psychological and social impacts are equivalent to physical violence.
• The scale is staggering and underreported: Research across Africa, such as TechHer Nigeria’s 2021 study, shows over 60% of women online have experienced some form of digital abuse. Most incidents go unreported to authorities due to stigma, lack of trust, and inadequate systems.
• Technology amplifies, but does not create, the problem: Digital violence stems from the same patriarchal norms, entitlement, and misogyny that fuel offline abuse. Technology merely provides new, efficient, and scalable tools for perpetrators.
• Youth are both the most vulnerable and the most critical agents for change: With a young, digitally-native population, West Africa sees high exposure to TFGBV. Engaging young people, especially young men as allies, in norm-change is essential for prevention.
• Solutions must be multi-stakeholder and systemic: This requires survivor-centered support infrastructure, strengthened and enforced laws (like Nigeria’s VAPP and Cybercrimes Acts), cultural and religious leadership engagement, and sustained funding for grassroots organizations.
• Digital safety is a prerequisite for digital inclusion: You cannot economically or socially empower women online if their digital spaces are not safe. Online safety and gender justice are inseparable.

Background: The Evolution of Tech-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV)

Defining the Threat Landscape

TFGBV encompasses any act of violence or abuse that is facilitated by information and communication technologies (ICTs). Key manifestations include:

• Non-Consensual Distribution of Intimate Images (NCII): Sharing or threatening to share private sexual images.
• Cyberstalking and Harassment: Persistent, unwanted online contact, monitoring, or threatening communication.
• Doxing: Publishing private personal information (address, phone number) online with malicious intent.
• AI-Driven Abuse: Using generative AI to create fake nude images (deepfakes) or clone voices to produce non-consensual sexual content, making abuse cheaper, faster, and harder to detect.
• Online Sexual Exploitation and Grooming: Using digital platforms to coerce or manipulate individuals,