Internet-based co-parenting apps: Protecting women and children against coercive control and domestic and family violence in Australia

DFV remains a pressing concern in Australia and internationally,1 with far-reaching impacts on victims/survivors, families and communities. The Family Law Act 1975 (Cth), s 4AB defines family violence as violent, threatening or other behaviour that coerces or controls a family member or causes them to fear for their safety. This definition underscores the breadth of behaviours encompassed under DFV, extending beyond physical violence to include psychological, emotional and increasingly, technology-facilitated forms of abuse. Further, as coercive control has been criminalised across jurisdictions (New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia), research has also focused on technological strategies employed to enact coercive control.