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  1. IX. SAFETY PLANNING IN THE MODERN AGE

IX. SAFETY PLANNING IN THE MODERN AGE

Even with the advent of stronger consumer data privacy laws, survivors still need to be vigilant about the information they send online, whether it be posting on social media, sending emails, or signing up for frequent buyer programs. A technology-centered safety plan is a necessity because online information can be abused not just by private companies

237Carey, supra note 225, at 717.

238 GOODMARK, supra note 34, at 154.

239 See Santos, WA Gun Laws, supra note 54; Kristian J. Berhost, California Is A Model State for Domestic Violence Prevention and Gun Laws, FAMILY JUSTICE CTR. ALLIANCE (Mar. 8, 2017), https://www.familyjusticecenter.org/california-model-state-domestic-violence-prevention-gun-laws/ [https://perma.cc/L3BV-MJXM].

240 MULLIGAN & LINEBAUGH, supra note 163, at 38.

but by an intimate partner. 241 Advocates should prepare a tech-centered safety plan with a survivor as an additional safety plan or incorporate technology-based tips into a survivor’s current safety plans. For example, advocates can encourage pregnant survivors to consider buying traditional manual baby monitors rather than monitors that can stream over cell phones or laptops.

Unfortunately, the burden continues to be on domestic violence advocacy organizations to educate and counsel survivors on how to protect their electronic information on top of traditional safety planning guidance. The passage and implementation of the GDPR and CCPA as well as the growing number of proposed state and municipal data privacy legislations may bring with it greater awareness and education to the public on data privacy management. For example, businesses that work with consumer data may need to provide staff trainings on data privacy management. Similar to how increased financial literacy skills can help survivors of domestic violence eliminate dependency and recognize signs of abuse,242 it can be theorized that increased technology literacy skills can help survivors achieve similar goals. If a socially accepted data privacy management system becomes more widespread, less pressure is placed on domestic violence advocates to teach survivors about data privacy management.243

Furthermore, domestic violence advocates should educate themselves about the types of technology that are available so that they can teach survivors who may not be as technologically aware about managing tech-related abuse. For example, advocates should be able to teach survivors how to save and delete emails and text messages, and how to save screenshots from their phones and computers. Additionally, advocates should be aware of and be able to teach survivors how to carefully use money application such as Venmo, Cash App, or Apple Wallet. Advocates working with cross-national survivors should also be aware of culturally specific apps such as WeChat for Chinese speakers or Kakao for Korean speakers.

241 Lee & Anderson, supra note 115, at 30 (“[A] lot of personal information is shared online that is out of [a survivor’s] control.”) Domestic violence advocates have asserted that abusers can stalk their partners with their social media accounts as well as with a shared child’s own social media accounts. Id.

242 Laura Bradley, Study: Financial Literacy Can Help Abused Women, USA TODAY (July 24, 2014, 4:40 PM), https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/07/24/financial-literacy-trainingabused-women/13116295/ [https://perma.cc/2W6A-G43Y].

243 Jerry Finn & Teresa Atkinson, Promoting the Safe and Strategic Use of Technology for Victims of Intimate Partner Violence: Evaluation of the Technology Safety Project, 24 J. FAMILY VIOLENCE 53, 58 (2009).

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