Warwickshire County Council (WCC) and partner organisations are coming together to support the annual international campaign, 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, from 25 Nov to 10 Dec.
The campaign highlights the urgent need to tackle online harassment, image-based abuse, and forms of digital coercion that disproportionately affect women and girls worldwide. Examples of different digital abuse include:
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Image-based abuse / non-consensual sharing of intimate images (often called revenge porn or leaked nudes)
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Cyberbullying, trolling, and online threats
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Online harassment and sexual harassment
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AI-generated deepfakes such as sexually explicit images, deepfake pornography, or digitally manipulated images, videos or audio
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Hate speech and disinformation on social media platforms
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Doxxing (publishing private information)
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Online stalking or surveillance including tracking to monitor someone’s activities
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Online grooming and sexual exploitation
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Catfishing and impersonation
To raise awareness and share key support messages for this year’s campaign, WCC and partners will post daily content across Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Nextdoor throughout the 16-day campaign. These posts will signpost residents to the dedicated website Talk2Someone Warwickshire, which provides help and advice to anyone experiencing online abuse or for family and friends who are supporting someone.
In addition to signposting to local and national services, Talk2someone provides resources to help explain the different types of domestic abuse, alongside tips of how to stay safe online.
There is also step-by-step advice for reporting abuse. To access Talk2Someone please visit www.talk2someone.org.uk. It is estimated that one in three UK women (36%) have experienced online abuse on social media or another online platform, equivalent to 11 million women across the UK. In addition, 1 in 6 of these women experienced this abuse from a partner or ex-partner, which equates to almost 2 million women in the UK*.
Cllr Anne-Marie Sonko, Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care and Health at Warwickshire County Council, said: “Gender-based violence in any form, whether physical, emotional, or digital has no place in Warwickshire’s local communities. The rise of online abuse is concerning, and we must work together to raise awareness, challenge harmful behaviours, and signpost to support services to ensure women and girls feel safe in every space, including online. Please know you are not alone and if you are experiencing digital abuse, Warwickshire services are here to help you.”
Digital abuse can also be a part of domestic abuse, which is not exclusive to one gender, sexual orientation, disability, faith or age. Help is available to anyone in Warwickshire experiencing domestic abuse to receive support from both national and local services.
Denise Brown, Director of Service Delivery at Refuge, who provides the Warwickshire Domestic Abuse Accommodation and Support service said: “If you are experiencing domestic abuse, know that you are not alone. Refuge has local services across the country which are here to support you. Domestic abuse can happen to anyone, but it is never the fault of the person subjected to it. At Refuge we know that abuse can take many different forms, but it always comes down to a perpetrator exerting power and control.”
She added: “Our Warwickshire service is here to provide dedicated support to women, men and people of all genders. This includes facilitating access to essential supplies, expert staff, and safe emergency accommodation, so survivors can safely flee their perpetrators and rebuild their lives free from abuse.”
“Refuge’s Warwickshire Helpline is available from Monday – Friday (8:30am – 8:30pm) on 0800 408 1552. For support outside of these hours, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is available 24/7 on 0808 2000 247.”
Domestic Abuse is considered a crime and as such the Police and the courts will take necessary action to prosecute accordingly.
Detective Inspector Richard Hobbs, domestic abuse lead for Warwickshire Police, said: "Over the next couple of weeks, we’re keen to remind victims of domestic abuse that they are not alone. We will investigate every report and have specially trained officers to offer support. "We always work closely with local support groups so we can make sure help is available throughout the process. You can also contact one of these support groups for advice if you’re not ready to speak to police. "If you are a victim of domestic abuse please don’t suffer in silence.”
Find out more about the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign. To discover the support available for domestic abuse in Warwickshire, visit www.talk2someone.org.uk.