By Bill Zeeble, KERA News
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-960148.mp3
Dallas, TX – Even though violent crime rates have dropped nationwide, statistics show crimes against women have risen. KERA's Bill Zeeble reports stalkers are using technology to track their victims.
Stalking, controlling, abusing and killing women rank at the top of crimes targeting females. At Dallas's 6th annual conference on Crimes Against Women, Sarah Tucker offered some tips to law enforcement professionals in the field.
Tucker is the Technology Specialist with The National Network to End Domestic Violence. She suggests limiting use of devices like cell phones that can track you through secretly loaded spyware. It can be installed by an abusive boyfriend or husband.
Sarah Tucker: Our concern is with programs that don't provide notification, because that program could be running for days, weeks, months before the person being stalked ever knows that they're being stalked.
Tucker says some spyware serves a good purpose. Parents may install it on their child's cell phone to know where they are. Tucker says a responsible parent tells the child it's loaded, and there's a corresponding text that says something like "mom just found you." The stalker won't use that program.
Tucker also warns of vehicle GPS devices. She has seen several cases of the man secretly tracking his wife's every move. Tanya Hughes - who helps domestic violence victims in North Carolina, says her own friend was stalked that way, and wanted the car dealer to disarm the GPS.
Tanya Hughes, Domestic Violence Division, Mecklenberg Sheriff's Department: When she took it there for them to look at and see if they could take it out, they said well it's not a crime for a spouse to put a tracking device in the vehicle, so they wouldn't remove it.
Hughes says that's because it's legal for the owner to track his own vehicle. Jan Langbein runs the The Genesis Women's Shelter in Dallas and says it's hard work keeping up with the likes of an abusive husband using cyber devices.
Langbein: The car's in his name, the house is in his name, stocks are in his name. For this society to say why doesn't she get out,' everywhere she looks there's one more road block that keeps her from it.
Langbein says there are ways to keep stalkers at bay. Here are a few - find out if spyware is loaded on your cell phone. Use pay as you go phones and pay with cash. Test phone lines frequently to insure blocked calls stay blocked.
Langbein helped create this conference on to spread information to professionals in the field, and to female victims of violence.
Conference On Crimes Against Women