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Video transcript

 Hello, welcome to Chayn’s deep dive on technology-facilitated gender-based violence. I am Francesca.

 And I am Carolina. Both of our backgrounds are in frontline support for survivors — Francesca worked in the Rape Crisis movement and I have done a lot of work on migrant justice.

We wanted to have this conversation because Chayn is an organisation for survivors that exists solely online. We know that online can be a site of harm, but we think it can also be a site for healing. We think we occupy a really unique space, right, Francesca?!

 We are a tech charity building services and resources for survivors through technology — while being trauma-informed, survivor-centred, and working to end all gender-based violence. In our experiences in frontline work, tech abuse can often be minimised or poorly understood. We want to change that and bring more awareness to such a harmful and growing form of violence.

 So today we’re going to explore a tech abuse case we’ve been discussing a lot at Chayn recently. It was made into a BBC documentary, and there have been multiple articles written about it online. We’re going to use the case as a starting point to talk about what tech abuse looks like, how it makes us feel, and possible pathways for healing.

 Just a content note that we’ll be discussing details of tech abuse and human trafficking in this conversation, so we invite you to take as much care as you need, and pause or stop listening wherever you like. If anytime you need to ground in the present moment, we have lots of different grounding exercises over on our trauma support platform, Bloom.

 As technology becomes ever more ingrained into our everyday lives and more and more of our human interactions and daily tasks are driven online, the use of it for no good has also increased.

CC: Francesca, can you tell us a bit about how we understand tech abuse at Chayn and what it means to us?

 Tech abuse is any type of abuse that uses technology as a medium to harm others. It can happen across any device like computers, mobile phones, and tablets, as well as via in-home technology like Alexa, AirTags, Ring doorbells, and cameras. It can happen anywhere online including social media, online chats, emails, online gaming, live streaming and more. It is an extension of other forms of gender-based violence, and often happens as part of other abuse. Online and offline violence and harm are very connected.

FJ: Carolina, you brought this particular story to us. Can you tell us a bit about it and why you wanted us to talk about it?

 The story today is of a Brazilian model and influencer called Kat Torres. Torres once had over a million followers on Instagram and Youtube, where she showed her luxurious modelling lifestyle in New York. She had links with celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, and used it as an important tool to legitimise herself. Torres then branched out into ‘life coaching’, using self-help videos offering advice on relationships, wellness, business success and spirituality.

 platforms to groom other Brazilian models-to-be, bringing them to the USA with the promise of a luxurious life and once there, subjecting them to sexual exploitation and violence.

I chose this story because, from my experience in frontline services, I know this type of abuse is more common than we realize, yet rarely discussed. Survivors often fear retaliation from traffickers, especially when the full extent of the traffickers’ power and network is unclear. Common feelings of shame and stigma also play a role, particularly in cases of sexual exploitation, where survivors may fear being judged or blamed. Questions like, "Why did I let this happen?" or "What did I do to deserve this?" are common, but it's important to remember that abuse is never the survivor's fault.

: Yep I think that makes so much sense. So many survivors feel shame after experiencing abuse, even though that shame isn’t for survivors to carry. If that’s how you feel, know you’re not alone and that this isn’t your fault. It can be really hard to connect with that and can take time! I like to think of these as mantras we can repeat and tend to like watering seeds - over time, they will bud and grow.

I was also thinking about how, in the BBC documentary, survivors were understandably very fearful of showing their faces publicly and also being online again — which is such a normal reaction considering that online spaces were part of the tools used to abuse them. We want to try and support each other to feel that online spaces can still be for us after experiencing online abuse — we’ll link to some resources we have on healing our relationships with technology that you can explore further if you want to!

 This case shows us how the internet can be weaponized to perpetrate online abuse — it shows us the tactics and tools abusers use, including exploiting the colonial idea of a promising life in the Global North.

: Yes and, in this story, the person who abuses is both a woman and a model, which is different from the idea most of us might have of perpetrators. Of course we know that gender-based violence is mainly perpetrated by men but all genders can be survivors and all genders can harm others, too.

It's important to say that technology did not create grooming - it already existed in the offline world - but the variety of platforms in existence has increased abusers' reach and opportunities.

FJ: How do you think the Global South migrant survivor experience is unique?

 This story speaks to what the Brazilian Consulate and some frontline organizations in the Uk have noted recently which is a surge in online dating spaces being used by men as a tool to bring Brazilian women over to the UK, where they subsequently subjected them to various types of violence. I have also met survivors and learned about other cases where individuals were brought to the UK by online job or study agencies, with promises of certain salaries and working conditions. However, once they arrived, they were subjected to control and exploitation.

In these examples, we can observe a colonial mindset where countries in the Global North are perceived as offering better opportunities and access to wealth than those in the Global South. This reflects the 

 ideal, where individuals or nations from the Global North act from a position of superiority to "rescue" or "help" people from the Global South—historically referred to as "Third World" countries. From the outset, this creates a power imbalance, which adds to the multiple vulnerabilities that make migrant women more prone to violence and exploitation

 Yes, and there are so many other factors that make migrant women more susceptible to violence including language barriers, cultural barriers, immigration status, lack of access to services, and so on.

Some of the women living with Torres described the strict house rules they were under, and how Torres had control of all of their documents. One of the survivors said “It was terrifying. She had all my information, my passport, and my driving licence.”

 Exactly, just like Torres did, the first action the abuser would usually take is to hold survivors' documents, so they become dependent on them and can’t leave the country. Then, if language is a barrier, the abuser would take control of setting up bank and phone accounts, etc. disguised by the intention to help but really intended to access to survivors' personal information and further manipulate and control.

 It can be really difficult to say no when someone is asking for your important documents, particularly when it’s someone that you trust and when you think they’re acting in your best intentions. But, your passport belongs to you and it’s so important that you have access to it whenever you might need it. Keep it somewhere safe, that you only know where it is.

Isolation feels like it’s such a massive part of this, don’t you think?

: Yes. As one of the most common manipulative actions, abusers isolate survivors. As described by those Torres abused: "We were forbidden from speaking to each other, and needed Torres’ permission to leave our rooms - even to use the bathroom.” Another survivor said: “I was becoming increasingly psychologically isolated from friends and family and willing to do anything Torres suggested.”

 Isolation in the digital age - and especially if the survivors' support networks live in another country - can look like limiting communication with family and friends, monitoring devices or dictating who you can be friends with on social media.

 As a migrant myself, I understand that often we don’t want to worry our family and close friends with whatever is going on with us — especially when we’ve moved to a different country. Even having one person that you trust, who you feel able to tell your full story and feelings to, can be such a support and help you to find a way out. You don’t have to do it alone. If you’re worried about someone looking at your phone and your messages, remember there’s ways to keep your devices secure. We’ll link to other helpful resources that can help you do this.

: Absolutely. This kind of isolation and removing survivors from their support networks was a tactic Torres used. She demanded that survivors block their family and friends on social media and, after a while of not having any information, the survivors’ families started a campaign on social media to find their relatives’ whereabouts.

Once Torres discovered this, she demanded one of her victims/survivors to post a video on Instagram saying: ‘I am recording this video to order you to stop persecuting me. Stop looking for me. If I blocked you all, there's a reason, it means I don’t want to talk to any of you. I am well, leave me alone’.

This is really scary! Tell us a bit about the survivors who managed to get out and what happened next.

 Long story short, some of the victims-survivors’ families started a campaign on social media that gained momentum and dominated news outlets in Brazil. Other survivors of Torres saw the campaign on social media, got together with other survivors and their families and contacted law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, in an attempt to get the influencer arrested. Torres was arrested and the survivors returned to their homes. Torres was sentenced to eight years in prison for human trafficking and slavery in July 2024. Additional charges have also been filed against her.

 And here is a reminder to all survivors who may feel that there’s no way out, you’re not alone! Don’t be afraid of reaching out to your support network, it doesn’t matter how small it is.

 Francesca, shall we share some tips on keeping ourselves as safe as possible:

 We know that reporting to the police and accessing any form of criminal justice can be really hard to do.

 Lots of survivors may be afraid of reporting or don’t know that reporting is even an option, especially when we’re from marginalised groups where relationships with police have long histories and contexts, or we’re in a different country.

 Some of the survivors of Torres’ abuse reported to the police in the USA and weren’t taken seriously — they were only taken seriously when it became a much bigger and more visible story and became “international”.

If you’ve been through or are going through a similar situation, you have the right to safety, and to be believed and supported. It’s important to say that abuse does not and will not define us.

 Some of the survivors of Torres have now returned to Brazil and are in therapy to try and recover from their experiences. We know that healing from all forms of abuse is never straightforward or linear. No two days are the same. It has many ups and downs and it can take as long as it is needed.

 Exactly. Even naming and acknowledging that this has happened can be painful, hard, and take time. There can be so many different, conflicting feelings — shame, fear, guilt, grief. These aren’t weird, abnormal, or uncommon. Be kind to yourself. Give yourself grace and compassion. Think about what conditions you need, want (and deserve!) in your life to heal.

Find mantras that connect for you and return to them as much as you need. Remember that we didn’t deserve to be violated. We deserve trust. We deserve respect. We deserve privacy. We deserve freedom.

 If you find this conversation on types of tech abuse useful, please share it within your network. Knowledge is power. Thank you for listening, until next time. Bye

We explore the case of wellness influencer, Kat Torres, who used her aspirational lifestyle on social media to sell a dream to Latin American women. The reality when they arrived in the US was very different. We get into how technology can be used to manipulate and deceive us, especially when we’re trying to build better lives.

Selling dreams: The dark side of digital influence

We explore the case of wellness influencer, Kat Torres, who used her aspirational lifestyle on social media to sell a dream to Latin American women. The reality

Selling dreams: The dark side of digital influence

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