“Digital safety is a human right,” said Entesar Saeid, a women’s rights defender and lawyer from Egypt. “Women and girls have the right to express themselves safely online and to do it without being exposed to threats, including threats to their personal lives.”

“There are loads of different solutions,” said Hera Hussain, a feminist activist in Britain. “We need stronger laws to protect survivors and have tech companies regulate their content on platforms. And society also needs to create better and more ethical digital citizens.”

Around the world, women’s rights defenders are joining forces to combat online gender-based violence, coming up with solutions to create a digital space free from hate and discrimination, and based on human rights. Pushing for accountability and legal reforms, providing training and support, and empowering women, these activists are making a difference.

On International Women’s Day, UN Human Rights honours women’s rights activists and feminist movements at the forefront of efforts to advance women’s rights and gender equality.

The rise of online gender-based violence is a serious global problem. About 60% of women and girls experienced online harassment, a type of violence that has the same harmful and life-threatening consequences as other forms of gender-based violence.

Saeid is executive director of the Cairo Foundation for Law and Development, a feminist non-governmental organization that fights all forms of gender-based violence and promotes equality and justice.

Created in 2009, the Foundation provides legal aid to survivors of gender-based violence, including sexual harassment, incest and rape, and fights female genital mutilation. In 2023, the Foundation started a program to combat cyber violence and support victims and survivors.

The program provides legal and psychological support for women and girls. It also organizes social-media campaigns to inform women about cyber violence and how to protect their online accounts.

“Women may sometimes be exposed to online violence and not be aware of it,” she said. “Since we began our work, we have seen more awareness, with recent sentences against perpetrators of online violence. However, there are still a lot of women who are afraid to report this kind of violence because of social stigma.”

“Digital clinics” and legal reform

«La seguridad digital es un derecho humano». Entesar Saeid, director ejecutivo de la Fundación de El Cairo para el Derecho y el Desarrollo.

“Digital safety is a human right.” Entesar Saeid, executive director of the Cairo Foundation for Law and Development. © Entesar Saeid

The Foundation has set up “digital clinics,” which provide training and capacity building.

“At the beginning, women did not understand what digital clinics were about. In our first month, we had one case, but soon we began getting more cases. In 2024 we provided support to 346 women,” Saeid.

A 2021 UN Women study in the Arab States region found that 60 % of women internet users had been exposed to online violence. Saeid said gender-based violence cuts across all classes, but that young women and girls who are social media influencers are particularly exposed.

Besides advocacy and support, the Foundation is working with Selema (Safety in English), a network of NGOs, to change the law. The group is part of a task force working to draft a comprehensive law against gender-based violence with a chapter that protects women from digital violence.

“We need to train those who work in courts, police and in Interior Ministry departments to provide referral services when women are victims,” she said.

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Women human rights defenders forge alliances, advocate for accountability, demand change and call for peace. We must stand with them and send a clear message that gender-based violence, discrimination and misogyny have no place in our world.

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UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk

“Every single human has a right to dignity, safety, self-expression and good health.” Hera Hussain, founder of Chayn. © Hera Hussain

Healing survivors

Chayn means “peace of mind” in Urdu. It is also the name of a survivor-centered nonprofit organization that combats gender-based violence against women and online violence.

Hussain, who was born in Britain and grew up in Pakistan, founded Chayn in 2013 after helping two friends escape abusive marriages.

“I found out that it was really hard to find resources online for survivors, including information about basic rights or how to cope with trauma,” she said. “It is a very lonely journey, and it shouldn’t be, so I thought that if I put critical information in one place, I could help people.”

For Hussain, online gender-based violence is “just the continuation of the kind of abuse that women and marginalized groups face in the physical world and have faced for a very long time.”

“But the digital manifestation is much more pervasive, with a bigger impact. You can have a perpetrator in one part of the world and the victim and survivor in a completely different part of it.”

Today, Chayn works with survivors across the world in 14 languages and provides advocacy and free online tools and resources on online safety, with a focus on healing and empowering women and other marginalised genders who have experienced domestic, sexual, or technology-facilitated abuse. The group has reached 600,000 people through its work.

Mental health

Hussain talked about the impact on mental health of technology-facilitated gender-based violence, particularly deepfake sexual abuse.

“In many cultures, such images can bring enough shame to the victim and survivor and the family that it can put someone at risk of grave physical harm,” she said. “It can really change the trajectory of the survivor's life, including not being able to get an education, find a job, or even marry.”

Hussain said online gender-based violence can severely curtail the enjoyment of other rights; it can prevent women and other groups from running for office, being active citizens or simply living life to the fullest.

“Every human has a right to dignity, safety, self-expression and good health,” she said. “But women and marginalized genders are being deprived of this because online spaces are cesspools of hate, violence and discrimination. This is why it is important that the web is safe and a place for joy. It is a digital commons, a space that we all share."

For Hussain, making that change for the better is a collective responsibility, bringing in governments, tech companies, regulators and law enforcement to act. Society also has a role to play, by teaching young people about consent, healthy relationships and respect for women.

“If we want humanity to thrive, we need women’s active participation to help solve problems such as food security or climate change or contribute to innovation,” she said. “If online abuse stops them from being active citizens, not only is it a grave injustice, we miss out on great ideas.”