
As always, don’t become part of the chain of custody for evidence by saving documentation of abuse. Do not collect more information than you would for a phone hotline call or in-person conversation. Strive for work-life balance and practice self-care, including asking for supervision and debriefing specific to digital services.Īs a guideline, collect the least amount of information needed and keep it for the shortest time possible. Text and chat conversations tend to last longer and may have more numerous and graphic disclosures. Follow your program’s practice if the survivor doesn’t reply for a certain amount of time. Ideally each survivor should close the conversation on their end. Focus on the survivor don’t try to multi-task. Follow your program’s practice about the use of internet slang, acronyms, and emojis. Adapt key skills to reflect, validate, educate, and clarify what the survivor is saying.

Stop and clarify if there is any confusion.Īctive listening is different when using chat or text. Emojis, acronyms, and internet slang can have multiple meanings. Text and chat are mostly written words, which can make it more difficult to assess emotion and tone. You do need written consent when survivors ask you to share their personal information with someone outside your program. Whether you seek verbal or written confirmation will depend on the practice at your program, though generally if you don’t require written consent on a phone call, you shouldn’t need one for chat, video, or text. Be sure to share information in plain language, and give survivors a chance to ask questions. Tell survivors if there are any limits on the services you can provide with technology, including any limits on confidentiality.Īs with more traditional services, informed consent is very important. Share your program’s practices about why or when a conversation would end, and what to expect if they reach out again. Let survivors know what to expect from digital services. Learn more about talking with survivors about safe ways to communicate. If they still want to continue, respect that wish.

Safety and privacy checks at the start of every conversation should include something basic like, “Are you worried that anyone else might have access to your device or our conversation?” If the survivor suspects monitoring, offer options. The skills you already use in phone and in-person advocacy are the foundation for digital services. Default settings may store information about the conversation, or messages themselves, in devices, browsers, or accounts. Additionally, many tools collect, store, and possibly even share the personally identifying information of survivors. For example, voice or video conversations may be overheard. Technology used for communication can pose challenges to survivor privacy and can undermine programs’ confidentiality obligations.
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One strategy is for advocates to establish a method to verify identity, such as a code word or phrase. However, even a phone or video call could involve impersonation if a different advocate takes a follow-up call from a survivor.

The risk for impersonation, including by the abusive person, exists across all text-based platforms: text, messaging, chat, social media, and email. A survivor’s device may be monitored physically, through an online account, or with spyware. Interception of communication between an advocate and a survivor could pose a risk to a survivor’s privacy or safety. Learn more about choosing technology and setting up digital services at .Īll tools have risks, even older technologies like phones.Īdvocates should be able talk about relevant risks with survivors. Offering additional communication options is crucial to survivor-centered services, and it must be done with caution. “Digital Services” means using technology tools to provide services to survivors.
