# Digital domestic abuse rises as tech misuse grows among Indian families 2026-08-19T17:16:33+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Digital domestic abuse, where technology is used by family members or partners to control, surveil, or harm loved ones, is an emerging concern in Indian households. Common practices like sharing passwords, using tracking apps, or managing finances online can be misused for abuse. For instance, an adult managing elderly parents' finances may steal savings, or a parent may stalk their adult child via device trackers. Partners may misuse shared social media accounts to control posts or cut off access to smart home devices. Unlike cyber crimes by strangers, digital domestic abuse involves victims living with or being financially dependent on the abuser, making it harder to seek help. The abuse often co-occurs with physical or emotional abuse. In homes where the abuser knows all passwords or uses spyware, even household devices can be compromised. The line between legitimate care and abuse is blurry, especially for children and the elderly. A parent monitoring a six-year-old's phone is acceptable, but the same action with a 16-year-old may be abusive. Senior citizens, dependent on younger relatives for digital tasks, are especially vulnerable to losing control of their finances and home ownership rights. ## Indian Opinion Analysis India's Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, does not explicitly list digital abuse, though courts have interpreted 'economic abuse' and 'verbal and emotional abuse' to cover some tech-facilitated acts. A dedicated cyber domestic abuse provision is absent. The grey area between parental monitoring and abuse is particularly wide because Indian law grants parents broad authority over minor children, but no clear digital rights framework exists for adolescents. For senior citizens, the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, offers some protection against financial exploitation, but proving digital coercion remains difficult. Victims often need to simultaneously secure devices, find shelter, and navigate legal help, hard when the abuser controls the phone plan and Wi-Fi. A concrete step would be the Ministry of Women and Child Development issuing clear guidelines on what constitutes digital domestic abuse, as has been recommended by multiple parliamentary committees. Key data point: the National Commission for Women received over 30,000 domestic violence complaints in 2023, but no separate category for digital abuse exists. ## Coverage - thehindu.com Explains digital domestic abuse as a phenomenon without taking sides, uses illustrative examples rather than advocating for policy or blaming any party. This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Digital Domestic Abuse, National Commission for Women Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/digital-domestic-abuse-rises-as-tech-misuse-grows-among-indian-families/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/digital-domestic-abuse-rises-as-tech-misuse-grows-among-indian-families/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/