Antivirus companies team up with organizations working against domestic violence to help put an end to domestic violence

Domestic violence should never ever be accepted and today, ten organizations including Avira, Kaspersky, Malwarebytes and NortonLifeLock have teamed up to launch a global initiative called the Coalition Against Stalkerware.

Now, you must be wondering, what on earth is stalkerware?

Stalkerware programs are hidden background programs that carry the possibility for intrusion into a person’s private life. These programs can be used as a tool for abuse in cases of domestic violence and stalking, hence the name. By installing these apps, abusers can get access to their victim’s messages, photos, social media, geolocation, audio or camera recordings..

Stalkerware has actually been on the rise for some years now, with non profits experiencing a growing number of victims seeking help with the problem. According to a study done by Kaspersky, the number of users facing stalkerware rose by 35%, from 27,798 in 2018 to 37,532 in 2019.

Up until now, the lack of an agreed-upon standard definition and detection criteria for stalkerware has made it particularly difficult for the IT security industry to communicate around the issue. This is why the formation of this coalition is so important. It’s a vital step in creating a proper definition and reaching a consensus on detection criteria.

The Coalition has also launched an online portal, with the goal of helping victims, facilitating knowledge transfer among members, developing best practices for ethical software development and educating the public about the dangers of stalkerware.

The full list of the 10 organizations involved in this are Avira, Electronic Frontier Foundation, European Network for the Work with Perpetrators of Domestic Violence, G DATA Cyber Defense, Kaspersky, Malwarebytes, National
Network to End Domestic Violence, NortonLifeLock, Operation Safe Escape and WEISSER RING.

It’s really encouraging to see antivirus companies acknowledge the vital role they play in helping put an end to this very serious problem. The Coalition has been envisioned as a non-commercial initiative to bring stakeholders from non-profit organizations, industry and other areas such as law enforcement under the same umbrella.

To find out more about the Coalition Against Stalkerware please visit the official website HERE.