Domestic abuse charity Refuge has warned that tech abuse, including spycam surveillance, has risen dramatically this year.

According to data from the organisation, referrals to its technology-facilitated abuse and economic empowerment team jumped by 62 per cent in the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same period of last year.

By the end of September, the team had already received more referrals than in the whole of 2024.

The organisation said that perpetrators are increasingly weaponising technology to exert coercive control, including through the use of stalkerware, which involves tracking a survivor’s every move.

The creation of harmful deepfakes and control over online banking access are other ways that technology is being exploited.

Refuge has also seen a "notable" rise in reports of surveillance, with more survivors reporting concerns about hidden microphones and cameras in their homes, which is now reported in the majority of cases.

Despite sustained campaigning by Refuge and others in the sector, the organisation said that law, policy and regulation continue to "lag behind" the rapid pace of technological change.

The charity has called on the government to make tackling tech-facilitated abuse a key priority in its upcoming Violence Against Women and Girls strategy, as well as "dedicated, sustainable" funding for specialist services.

"The tools that can be weaponised against survivors are becoming increasingly accessible and affordable to perpetrators," said Emma Pickering, head of the technology-facilitated abuse and economic empowerment team, Refuge. “This is why we urgently need a proactive policy approach, including regulation that ensures safety is built in by design, rather than harms being addressed as an afterthought."

Refuge supports thousands of survivors every day, with one person turning to the organisation for help every two minutes.
The organisation also operates the National Domestic Abuse Helpline.

“The rise in cases of technology-facilitated abuse is a huge concern – this kind of abuse can have a devastating impact on a survivor’s life and requires specialist support to rebuild from," said Dame Nicole Jacobs, domestic abuse commissioner. “Victims’ safety must be at the heart of the response from government, tech companies and Ofcom."

---