When tech turns to tyranny
A new campaign from Refuge, the charity supporting victims of domestic abuse, reveals how smart comms can have sinister uses.
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Credits
View on- Agency BBH/London
- Production Company Optical Arts
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Credits
View on- Agency BBH/London
- Production Company Optical Arts
- Design, Editing, CG Animation, Colour Grading & Post Production Optical Arts
- Mastering & Titles Electric Theatre Collective
- Sound Design/Music Grand Central Recording Studios
- Executive Producer Hannah May
- Sound Designer/Music Markus Ffitch
- Chief Creative Officer Joakim Borgstrom
- Creative Jennifer Ashton
- Creative Oliver Short
- Creative Director Kimberley Gill
- Executive Creative Director Helen Rhodes
- Producer Jemima Bowers
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Credits
powered by- Agency BBH/London
- Production Company Optical Arts
- Design, Editing, CG Animation, Colour Grading & Post Production Optical Arts
- Mastering & Titles Electric Theatre Collective
- Sound Design/Music Grand Central Recording Studios
- Executive Producer Hannah May
- Sound Designer/Music Markus Ffitch
- Chief Creative Officer Joakim Borgstrom
- Creative Jennifer Ashton
- Creative Oliver Short
- Creative Director Kimberley Gill
- Executive Creative Director Helen Rhodes
- Producer Jemima Bowers
Refuge is marking 50 years of supporting victims of domestic violence in a chilling new campaign created by BBH London and directed by Optical Arts.
Highlighting the insidious ways technology is being used by abusers to monitor and control their partners, the film reveals how this kind of cruelty makes the charity’s job more complex than ever.
At the heart of the campaign is a 40-second film, Domestic Abuse Is Getting Smarter, which at first glance, appears to be promoting a new smartphone. But as the camera lingers on its elegant design and a voiceover details its features, things take a disturbing turn.
Real-time maps can “keep you up to date with traffic in your area... and her movements”, while smart home features can be used to adjust the heating and lights “even when you’re not at home, so you can control her from wherever you are”.
This kind of control is one of the fastest growing crimes being tackled by Refuge, which saw a 97 per cent rise in complex tech abuse cases between April 2020 and May 2021.
Ruth Davison, CEO of Refuge, said: “Fifty years on from opening the world’s first Refuge there is sadly little to be celebrating. The numbers of women experiencing domestic abuse appears to be rising, not decreasing, and Refuge has never needed support from the public more."
