People who called for help and contacted the domestic violence rescue station said they were going crazy.
A woman turned on the air conditioner at home, but the air conditioner suddenly turned off without her control. Another said that the opening code of her front door code lock changes every day, and she has no idea why. Another said that she kept hearing the doorbell ringing at home, but there was no one outside.
These encounters are the routines of technological domestic violence. Networked locks, speakers, thermostats, lighting, and cameras are all about the convenience of new technologies, but now they have become tools for harassment, surveillance, revenge, and control.
The New York Times conducted more than 30 interviews. Domestic violence victims, their lawyers, and rescue center staff have described to us how new technologies have become new tools for domestic violence. The perpetrator controls all connected smart home products in the home through smartphones, even monitors and monitors, or threatens them to show their control. Even if the perpetrator is not at home, they can also use the smart home to commit violence.
Victims and emergency responders often lack understanding of smart technology, do not know how much control the perpetrator has over the device, and do not know how to legally respond to and prevent this situation. Their lack of knowledge in these areas makes things worse.
Erica Olsen, director of the National Network’s Safety Net Project (Safety Net Project), recently attended the End Domestic Violence lecture as a lecturer. "In the training seminars, some people have asked how to deal with this situation." She is very wary of the abuse of new technology because "We originally didn't want more people to know about it, but now this type of abuse is becoming more and more popular. Can't contain the fire."
There are many tech giants among companies that produce smart homes, such as Amazon's Echo smart speaker and Alphabet's Nest smart thermostat. The positioning of these devices is basically a convenient life assistant, for example, even when people go to work or vacation, they can still remotely monitor their homes.
Some connected device manufacturers claim that they have not received feedback from users about the abuse of related products. These devices can be remotely controlled by resetting or changing the home Wi-Fi password, but the manufacturer says there is no long-term panacea. The convenient switching of control accounts of smart home products naturally brings convenience to users, but it also unintentionally makes the system more vulnerable to hackers.
There is no organization or individual to track and investigate the abuse of connected devices in domestic violence, because the technology is relatively new. However, relevant agencies are catching up. According to the survey, as of 2017, 29 million households in the United States have used smart home technology, and it is predicted that this data will increase by 31% in 2018.
According to the staff who contacted victims of domestic violence, connected smart home products appear more and more frequently in domestic violence cases. The helpline staff said that in the past 12 months, more people called because the home network door, stereo, thermostat, lights or camera were out of control. The lawyers also pointed out that one of their latest priorities is how to adjust the wording of the restraining order to include smart home technology.
Muneerah Budhwani, the person who answered the call to the National Domestic Violence Helpline, said that she started receiving calls for help from victims of domestic violence related to smart home products last winter. "The helpers say that the abusers monitor and control them through smart home products," she said.
Graciela Rodriguez runs a 30-bed emergency shelter at the Family Peace Center in San Rafael. According to her, some of the victims who stayed in recently were "driven crazy by the equipment at home", such as the thermostat setting temperature suddenly soaring to 100 degrees, or the smart speaker suddenly starting to sing loudly.
"They felt that the situation at home was out of their control. After living here for a few days, they realized that they were suffering from domestic violence," she said.
There are several reasons why smart home technology is particularly vulnerable to abuse. Devices such as home security surveillance cameras are usually not expensive, some can be purchased for only $40, and the installation process is simple and convenient. Generally speaking, one of the two persons who is responsible for installing the equipment must know the operation method and the password, and naturally has the right to use the equipment against the other party.
According to responders, many of the victims of smart connected smart home products are women.
Melissa Gregg, a researcher in charge of smart home technology applications at Intel, pointed out that most of the installers of connected home devices are men. Jenny Kennedy, a postdoctoral researcher at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, found that many women did not download related apps on their mobile phones when investigating households with smart home devices.
According to a report released by the US Centers for Disease Control in 2010, one-third of women and one-fourth of women have experienced physical domestic violence or been followed by another party.
The interviewees in this article are all women, and many of them live in relatively affluent residential areas where such new technology products are particularly popular. They refused to disclose their names because some of them are still in the process of getting rid of domestic violence. The relevant staff and lawyers who handled their domestic violence cases also confirmed their claims to us.
All of them reflect that the abuser's use of connected devices is aggressive, and one of them compares it to "jungle warfare" because it is difficult to tell where the attack is coming from. They also pointed out the unequal power, because their partners have full control of the equipment.
One of the women is a doctor working in Silicon Valley, and her husband is an engineer. She told us that her husband would "control the thermostat, control the lights, control the music at home. Domestic violence is about power and control, and he uses technology to achieve this effect."
She said that she did not fully understand these technologies, nor did she know how to remove her husband's management account. But she dreams of controlling these devices.
"I have a plan in action. One of my dreams is to be able to say:'OK Google, play my music.'" As for the thermostat, her plan is to "remove it from the wall."
However, according to expert analysis, if the victim dismantles these devices, the conflict may intensify. "The perpetrator can see the equipment being dismantled, which may escalate the violence." said Jennifer Becker, a lawyer for Legal Momentum, a feminist advocacy group.
Eva Galperin, director of cybersecurity at the Electronic FronTIer FoundaTIon, a digital copyright advocacy organization, points out that turning off these devices will only put victims further away from control. "Victims are not sure how the perpetrators log in to these devices, and they may not be able to study it because they do not know how these systems work. They can only shut down all the devices, and this will only make them Farther and farther away from control."
Related legal resources are also very limited. Becker pointed out that the perpetrators have learned how to use smart home technology to control in the legal blind zone. But in some cases, if the perpetrator disseminates content recorded through indoor security surveillance, this may violate the anti-"erotic retaliation" laws of some states. Relevant laws are intended to prohibit one party from sharing private photos or videos of the former on the Internet after the two broke up.
Anti-tech domestic violence advocates have begun training emergency personnel. If a victim applies for a restraining order, they must submit an account to the judge that includes restrictions on smart connected home devices, regardless of whether the victim is aware of these accounts. Becker said that many victims do not yet know that this article should be added. Even if there is a restriction order, if the other party adjusts the temperature at home remotely, suddenly turns off the TV or lights, these may not violate the contact prohibition law.
There are also some law enforcement agencies that said this technology is too new, and they have not yet accepted relevant cases, although they suspect that similar situations have occurred.
The Palo Alto Police Department Sergeant Zach Perron said: "I firmly believe that this type of case exists. According to my understanding of the psychological activities of domestic violence suspects, it is entirely possible. Domestic violence is mainly about control. Many people do. I think that only physical violence is considered domestic violence, but in fact emotional violence is also considered domestic violence."
Ruth Patrick, head of WomenSV, a Silicon Valley anti-domestic violence project, said that many people still don't believe that the abuse of smart home products is a serious problem. According to her description, some of her clients had to stay in hospital for observation and undergo a mental health assessment after suffering from domestic violence with connected home appliances.
"If you tell people who don’t understand this that your husband knows what you do at home, and even knows what you say in the bedroom, you may be considered neurotic. People are always more likely to believe than facts. The victim is crazy."
The researchers pointed out that it is essential for everyone to understand smart home technology.
"Every time a new technology is introduced, people's first reaction is often,'Wow, life will be more convenient!' But with domestic violence survivors, we always see the other side of things." The US Anti-Domestic Violence Helpline The person in charge KaTIe Ray-Jones said.
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