Due to the sensitive nature of the work and the ubiquity of technology-facilitated coercive control in domestic and sexual violence and stalking, survivor-serving programs often have specific security needs. Perpetrators of cyberstalking in particular may have higher than average technical skills, or access to a survivor’s technology or information. In addition, it is a common dynamic in stalking that a perpetrator targets a victim’s support systems.

There can be a gap between program staff who understand the needs of victim service providers but may not have extensive technological expertise, and IT vendors such as managed service providers or hourly consultants. The latter may be accustomed to working with clients who have very different needs. Meanwhile, program staff may be unsure of what they need to bring up or ask about with a vendor.

This is a guide for victim services program managers and other decision-makers, to assist programs in discussing their security needs with vendors. It not only provides language to use with IT vendors, but non-technical explanations of what these questions mean and why they are important.

This resource was produced jointly by the following people and organizations:

The Safety Net Project of the National Network to End Domestic Violence
The National Resource Center on Cybercrimes Against Individuals (NRCC)