International Conference on Technology-Facilitated Sexual Violence

An associated event of Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union

November 27^th 2026 | The Law Society of Ireland, Dublin

Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and Ruhama are co-hosting an international conference to highlight the urgent need for collective European action on technology-facilitated sexual violence (TFSV).

The conference will bring together a survivor voice, senior government leaders, decision-makers, policy-makers and subject matter experts from Ireland, across Europe and the UK. Together, they will explore how to strengthen cross-sector and cross-border responses to emerging forms of TFSV, and improve prevention, accountability, support and access to justice as technology evolves.

Why this conference matters

Digital technologies have transformed how we communicate, work, participate and form relationships. However, they are increasingly being used to perpetrate, facilitate and amplify sexual violence in rapidly evolving and increasingly sophisticated ways that cross borders and jurisdictions.

TFSV takes many forms, including the non-consensual creation, taking, sharing or threatened sharing of intimate or sexual images; AI-generated or manipulated sexual material; cyberflashing and unwanted sexual content; online sexual harassment, threats and coercion; technology-facilitated sexual exploitation and trafficking; and the creation, distribution or amplification of violent, abusive or exploitative sexual and pornographic content. Digital technologies allow abuse to be created, replicated and disseminated at unprecedented speed and scale, increasing its reach, permanence and impact.

Women and girls are disproportionately affected, while children and people experiencing intersecting inequalities, discrimination or marginalisation may face particular vulnerabilities. The consequences can profoundly affect dignity, privacy, safety and wellbeing, as well as the ability to participate freely and equally in digital, social and public life.

Rapid advances in artificial intelligence and synthetic media bring further urgency. Digitally created, altered or manipulated material does not make the harm experienced by those targeted any less real.

TFSV cannot be separated from sexual violence in the physical world. Technology can create new ways to perpetrate abuse, extend existing patterns of violence and control, and allow harm to continue across online and offline spaces. Responsibility for preventing these harms must not fall on those who experience them. Governments, European institutions, regulators and technology companies all have a responsibility to prevent foreseeable harm and ensure technological development does not come at the expense of safety, dignity, equality and human rights.

Working together for change

Ruhama and Dublin Rape Crisis Centre are convening this conference because we believe that:

• TFSV is neither inevitable nor unavoidable. It is shaped by policy choices, design decisions and business models that can and must change.
• TFSV is sexual violence. Those affected must have access to protection, support and justice, regardless of whether the abuse occurs online or offline.
• Technology companies must do more than respond to abuse: they must prevent foreseeable harms arising from the design, operation and monetisation of their products and services.
• Technology companies must be held accountable when their products, systems and business models facilitate, amplify or profit from sexual violence.
• Safety, dignity, equality and human rights must be embedded in the design, governance and regulation of digital technologies.
• Collective action across Europe is essential to building a digital future in which everyone can participate safely, freely and equally.

Through this conference, we aim to help shape a future in which technology does not enable, facilitate or amplify sexual violence and abuse.

The conference is invite-only due to limited capacity at the venue.

Ends

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