DW Akademie Study Safer platforms, stronger participation
While not all survivors articulated such an acute parallel,
this testimony illustrates how prior experiences of threat or
trauma can amplify the perceived credibility and psychological impact of GBVO, intensifying avoidance behaviors
and self-censorship.
Overall, survivor testimonies show that the continuum of
GBVO is sustained not only by the frequency of attacks,
but by their predictability and social enforceability. The
expectation that abuse will follow women’s visibility normalizes harm and makes withdrawal appear rational, reinforcing GBVO as a gatekeeping mechanism that regulates
who can participate safely in public and digital life.
4.3 Target groups and
perpetrators
The findings consistently identify women journalists, activists, civil society actors, and young women with visible
online profiles as primary targets of GBVO. Visibility itself
emerges as the key risk factor.
4.3.1 Risk factors and survivor experiences
Across IDIs and KIIs, respondents rarely framed GBVO as
random. Survivors and professionals described a set of
recognizable “risk conditions” that increase the likelihood
of being targeted and shape how quickly abuse escalates. While these factors overlap, they were consistently
discussed in terms of (1) visibility and recognizability,
(2) expressing dissenting opinions or politically sensitive
views, and (3) gender and “respectability” norms.
1.
Visibility and recognizability (especially for women)
The most consistently cited trigger for women was being
known or identifiable, regardless of the specific content
posted. Survivors linked the onset of abuse to recognition,
once their name, face, workplace, or public role became
known, attacks intensified and spread more quickly.
When people knew me, the attacks started.
Survivor IDI — Woman
This was echoed by media professionals who emphasized
that “presence” itself can be framed as provocation in
gendered online spaces:
Visibility is the main trigger. Content does
not matter as much as presence.
KII — Media professional
Visibility expands reach, makes targeting easier (tagging,
mass reporting, coordinated harassment), and raises the
“social cost” of attacks for women through reputational
stigma.
2. Expressing dissenting opinions or politically
sensitive views (stronger for men, also present
for women)
A second major risk factor, raised across interviews, was
public disagreement with powerful actors, dominant
narratives, or influential groups. Male survivors particularly
highlighted that the trigger was often the stance itself,
especially when opinions challenged authorities or
prevailing political/sectarian positions.
This is due to the policy of silencing dissent
adopted by some sectarian or political group.
Survivor IDI — Man
Dissent is framed as disloyalty or threat, increasing likelihood of coordinated intimidation, doxxing, and efforts to
obtain “evidence” for blackmail or coercion.
3. Gender and “respectability” norms (women targeted
through moral policing)
For women, respondents repeatedly pointed to gendered
social expectations as a structural risk factor: women are
targeted not only because they speak, but because speaking publicly is treated as a violation of norms. Attacks
often shift quickly into sexualized language, morality
accusations, or insinuations about “family honors”, meaning women can be punished even for neutral content once
they are visible.
Perpetrators exploit social stigma to make threats credible
and costly, increasing pressure on self-censor.
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