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It’s common for perpetrators of domestic abuse to use modern technology to control and monitor their victim. If you are think your digital activity is being monitored, there are a few things you can do to protect yourself.
Be aware that the steps below may not completely cover your tracks, so always be vigilant in clearing your data.
You can close this website quickly using the button in the top right hand corner.
For immediate help with covering your tracks, you can call our 24-hour advice line on 01204 365677, or chat to us online every Monday to Friday between 12.30 – 2.30pm. The Charity Refuge also has a specialist website dedicated to supporting victims of tech abuse, with guides to secure social media, email and phone use.
Turn off mobile phone location tracking
If you suspect your partner is accessing your phone or has installed a tracking app, you can turn off the ‘track my phone’ function so you cannot be followed.
On an iPhone, go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and turn it off.
On Android devices, go to Settings > Location > Use location and toggle to off. Check any Advanced settings to make sure your location is still not being used by family members.
Delete emails permanently
When you delete an email in your inbox, it doesn’t actually delete the message – it moves it to your Trash, Bin or Deleted folder. To fully delete an email you need to delete them from the trash folder too.
If someone is sending you threatening emails or messages, always print them off and keep them as evidence. If you need evidence of messages you’ve sent, look in your Sent Messages or Sent Items folder.
Use a public computer
To be extra safe when browsing online, consider using computers at work, at a local library or go to a friend’s house.
Log out of forums and websites
If you are using a survivor’s forum, make sure you always log out when done to cover your tracks.
Use private browsing
Most web browsers have a private browsing mode that, once you’ve enabled it, ensures that all of your browsing history and any associated caches won’t be stored on the computer. Private browsing won’t stop online services seeing what you get up to, but your activity history will be safe.
In Safari, click File > New Private Window.
In Chrome, click the menu button with three dots > New Incognito Window.
In Firefox, click the menu button with three horizontal lines > New Private Window.
In Internet Explorer, go to Safety > Tools > InPrivate Browsing.
Delete your browsing history
Web browsers keep a record of all the pages you visit. This is known as your internet history. If you suspect someone is tracking your online activity, you should delete your internet history each time you use your computer.
In Internet Explorer and Firefox, hold down the Ctrl key on the keyboard, then press the H key. If using Opera, press Ctrl, Alt and H. Find any entries that reference pages you’ve been looking at, right click and select Delete.
Delete temporary internet files and cookies
Each time you visit a web page, a little file called a cookie is saved on your machine so you can access the page more quickly in the future. It good practice to delete these files from your computer. Some websites will now allow you to decline all cookies before browsing a website.
In Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Internet Options > General > Temporary Internet Files > Delete Cookies > OK. Click on Delete Files, put a tick in the box labelled Delete all offline content and click OK.
Under History, click on Clear History and then OK. Now look at the top of the window and click on the Content tab, select AutoComplete and finally, Clear Forms.
In Safari, go to History > Clear History.
In Firefox, click on Tools > Options > Privacy. Click on the Clear button next to Cache and Saved Form Information.
Delete your search history
When you search for something using keywords, Google and other search engines keep a record of the terms you searched for.
From the Google toolbar, click on the Google icon > Clear Search History.
Don’t know which internet browser you are using?
Your internet browser is the window you use to view this page. If you don’t know which internet browser you are using, click on Help in the top menu. A drop down will appear and tell you which browser you are using.