Coercive Control During the Pandemic: How Abusers Are Using New Tactics to Exert Power and Control

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a shift throughout the nation and the world.  With stay-at-home and social distancing orders in place across the U.S., victims of domestic and sexual violence are being forced further into seclusion with abusive partners. For many, the threat of physical and emotional violence will dominate their lives more than ever before.

This is an extremely vulnerable time for survivors, and abusers are using it as an excuse to find new ways to exert control. Some of those tactics include feigning illness, not allowing family members to interact or go outside the home at all, withdrawing all money out of bank accounts, contacting the survivor’s work and falsely stating they were exposed to the virus, etc. While some of these tactics may be new and based on the public health crisis, the dynamics of power and control remain the same.

Across the country and world, there has been a serious uptick in domestic violence related crimes. Direct service agencies are seeing an influx of new cases and in some jurisdictions, law enforcement are responding to more calls. This means that survivors need support, resources, services, and shelter more than ever. Fortunately, shelters and other resources remain open during this time as essential businesses.

Some providers have had to close their physical doors, but have remained open in their services, using digital options such as chat and video, to provide services. Many courthouses have also moved to digital services by offering remote hearings for protection orders or are extending orders until the pandemic passes. If you or your agency are considering digital services, please see our Digital Services Toolkit. Here you can find information about best practices when communicating with survivors using technology. You can also access many other resources on our COVID-19 Resources page on TechSafety.org and on NNEDV’s COVID response page.    

It still remains critical, even while many things are rapidly changing, to always assess for safety and privacy risks and conduct on-going safety planning in the safest and most strategic way. We hope these resources help service providers to do that easily with the many new tools they are working to implement.

Similarly, we have also created two new resources for survivors and friends/family. Seeking Help Online: National Resources and Considerations for Safety and Privacy for Survivors provides considerations for maintaining safety and privacy when accessing online help. In partnership with Facebook, we also produced the resource, Tips for Helping a Friend Experiencing Domestic Abuse During COVID-19.

Our colleagues at the Battered Justice Women’s Project have also produced a short video on Coercive Control During COVID-19: New Tactics. Please feel free to post any of these on your website and share widely.

We wish you health during this time. If you or someone you know may need to speak to someone about what they are experiencing, visit this list of National Hotlines.

What’s New: Changes and Details with Communication Platforms

As you know, technology is ever-evolving. With the sudden need of programs to rapidly switch to digital services during COVID-19, NNEDV’s Safety Net team is working diligently to keep the field up-to-date on all of the changes and new information we receive. We have been talking with companies, testing products, and working to better understand how each platform works, and the implications of using them.

Many of our recent conversations with companies have been fruitful. We have been double-checking their features, and looking at their privacy and security options, accessibility features, and policies on sharing and storing data. Excitingly, some are moving to make changes we have suggested, and beginning to plan for how they can incorporate our feedback to not only better enhance their products, but to ensure their products can be used by all, especially those with strict confidentiality obligations. 

The following are some of the new details we want to share. Please note, we do not endorse any one of these products. We cannot recommend software products or say if a product is or isn’t compliant with the federal confidentiality laws. What we can do is offer information we gather from the software companies, and information about best practices related to confidentiality, privacy, and safety while using technology to communicate with survivors. Use our Video Conferencing & Digital Communication Platforms Chart to learn more.  

1. Gruveo is now offering a free 45-day trial during this public health crisis and has instituted a 20% discount for all non-profits.

2. ResourceConnect is offering online chat for free during this pandemic.

3. Cyph is offering a discount for its telehealth package.

4. Doxy.me is offering services for free for a limited time for new customers and has an additional privacy protection option available with a signed agreement.

5. Zoom has an additional privacy protection that stops the company from collecting user (survivor) identifying data when the agency signs an additional agreement. Depending on the subscription you already have, this additional feature may come with a cost. Zoom discounts available through TechSoup.org.

6. News reports have come out about “Zoombombing.” If using Zoom for public purposes (where link is shared widely), make sure to change the default setting so that only the Host can share their screen or files, and use options to mute/unmute participants.

We have seen an overwhelming amount of questions about what company to choose. We have created a new resource to help programs compare services and understand their options. We encourage you to use this information along with information from the vendors directly to make agency-specific decisions. We also have a new handout on Digital Written Consent to Share Information.

 We are constantly learning and advocating for important changes. We will work to keep this new chart and other resources updated with the information we know about these vendors as it becomes available.

2020 US Census: Considerations for Survivors of Domestic Violence

This month, the US Census Bureau, a nonpartisan government agency, is mailing forms to all households across the country, as they work to collect demographic data on everyone residing in the United States. The count is mandated by the US Constitution and is conducted every 10 years. The 2020 Census counts the population in the United States and five U.S. territories (Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Each home will receive an invitation to respond to a short questionnaire—online, by phone, or by mail—between March 12-20.

Providing private information about where you live and who you live with can prompt concerns about privacy and safety for survivors of domestic violence. This is especially true for those who’ve left their abuser and are living in a shelter, those who have relocated to a new home and are working to keep their address private, and those who have enrolled in state address confidentiality programs.

We’re happy to announce the release of a new resource crafted for survivors and victim advocates, 2020 US Census: Considerations for Survivors, that provides important information related to the US Census and key safety and privacy considerations for survivors of domestic violence. Please check it out and feel free to reach out to us with any related questions!