Public figure

Last Updated 6/2/25

Definition: A person with significant public visibility, influence, or recognition who participates in public discourse through media, politics, activism, or other public-facing roles.

Abuse Types:

Intimate image abuse (IIA) Online harassment Doxxing Account access control Cyberstalking Deceptive synthetic media Inappropriate content Internet of things (IoT) abuse Online impersonation

Impact Types:

Self-censorship Psychological & emotional harm Infringement of rights & freedoms Economic harm Physical harm Sexual harm Social & political harm

Mitigation Strategies:

Real-time prompts for reconsideration User-controlled content filters Update ranking model Rate limits on low trust accounts Transparent feedback and reporting Prioritized reporting Quarantine borderline content Default to highest privacy settings Know your customer (KYC)

Perpetrator Intents:

Financial gain Aggrandizement Compliance Entertainment Punitive intent Sexual gratification Silence

Perpetrators:

Nation-state Informal group Stranger Formal group Personal connection

Synonyms

High-profile individual, Prominent person, Public personality

Examples

Journalist
politician
activist
celebrity
human rights defender
elected official

Description

Public figures face heightened TFGBV risks due to their visibility and the polarizing nature of their work. Women and LGBTIQ+ individuals in public-facing roles experience disproportionate targeting, particularly those in leadership positions (eSafety Commissioner, 2024). The attacks often serve dual purposes: harming the individual while simultaneously attempting to silence voices on important social and political issues. This creates what researchers call a "chilling effect" on democratic participation and public discourse.

References

Australian eSafety Commissioner. (2024, September). Technology, gendered violence and Safety by Design: An industry guide for addressing technology-facilitated gender-based violence through Safety by Design. Australian ESafety Commissioner. https://www.esafety.gov.au/sites/default/files/2024-09/SafetyByDesign-technology-facilitated-gender-based-violence-industry-guide.pdf
Baekgaard, K. (2024). Technology-facilitated gender-based violence: An emerging issue in Women, Peace and Security. https://giwps.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Technology-Facilitated-Gender-Based-Violence.pdf
Dhrodia, A. (2021, April 13). To stop online abuse against women, we must reform digital spaces. World Wide Web Foundation. https://webfoundation.org/2021/04/to-stop-online-abuse-against-women-we-must-reform-digital-spaces/
Jankowicz, N., Gomez-O’Keefe, I., Hoffman, L., & Becker, A. (2024). It’s Everyone’s Problem: Mainstreaming Responses to Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence. https://igp.sipa.columbia.edu/sites/igp/files/2024-09/IGP_TFGBV_Its_Everyones_Problem_090524.pdf
Johnston, M., & Meger, S. (n.d.). Policy brief: The linkages between violent misogyny and violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism. In Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. https://www.osce.org/files/f/documents/d/c/525297.pdf
Posetti, J., & Shabbir, N. (2022). The Chilling: a Global Study of Online Violence against Women Journalists EDITORS. https://www.icfj.org/sites/default/files/2023-02/ICFJ%20Unesco_TheChilling_OnlineViolence.pdf

Is something missing, or could it be better?