Thermostats, security cameras and other Internet-connected home devices are starting to be used to carry out domestic harassment – especially in the United States, where their prevalence is greater and driven by continuous promotions and advertising. In a long article published in the New York Times, Nellie Bowles explains that she has interviewed more than 30 people involved in cases of abuse carried out through devices for the home, finding confirmation of what has been reported in recent months by organizations that deal with protecting people who are victims of domestic harassment.
The phenomenon mainly affects women, who in many cases struggle to bring their cases to court because there is a lack of adequate laws to govern the new phenomenon. The level of harassment varies greatly from case to case, but usually falls within a context of unease and conflict between a couple's partners. Usually it is only one of the two who installs a new internet-connected home device (such as a security camera or an electronic lock), knows its operation and password, and has the app to manage it remotely. In the event that he is removed from the home – by his partner or following restrictive ordinances – he retains the possibility of remotely controlling various electronic devices and therefore exercises control over the other partner who remains in the house.
In the last year – the heads of the listening and assistance lines against domestic violence report – in the United States, phone calls from people desperate and frightened by the feeling of not having control of their home have increased significantly. The reports concern thermostats brought to unsustainable temperatures, sudden music plays from speakers in the middle of the night, doors that can no longer be opened with normal codes, WiFi bulbs that turn on on their own and activations in suspicious moments of the security cameras .
The head of a home for people experiencing domestic violence in San Rafael, California, told the New York Times that she has heard several stories from her guests about their homes “doing crazy things”: “They feel as if had lost control of their home. After a few days, they realize they are being abused “.
All the people who have reported their experiences to the New York Times are women and their testimonies are backed up and substantiated by domestic violence lawyers and counselors. One of them explained that her husband was able to remotely control many devices: “Check the thermostat. Check the lights. Check the music. Relationships where there is abuse are based on power and control, and he uses technology to do it. ” She admitted that she was not aware of all the systems installed by her husband over time, nor that she had access to the accounts used to control the various devices.
The solution to the problem may seem simple and trivial – turn off devices, unplug them or physically destroy them – but in reality, things are more complicated. If the domestic abuser realizes that they can no longer remotely control a device (usually because an app is reporting it to them), they can get further nasty and take the fight to a higher level, with a greater risk of going through harassment. to physical violence. Victims themselves may feel left out and unable to predict what their partner will do. Situations of this type lead to great states of stress, which contribute to not facing the situation clearly and sometimes to put oneself in danger.
Lawyers and industry experts recommend always asking judges to include household devices in their restraining ordinances, indicating a request to deactivate and remove all of them. The problem is that there are often no means and resources to verify that the removal has taken place, just as there are no clear indications to define the remote control of a device left active as an abuse.
The protection of people subjected to this type of abuse also involves greater IT and technological knowledge, which is useful for being more aware of the opportunities and risks posed by household devices. Understanding how they work, how passwords can be changed, and learning how to deactivate the accounts of those who control them remotely can help keep the problem under control, even if often not in a decisive way.
