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Chapter 13: Helping Prevent and Protect Against TFGBV

Preventing TFGBV requires that caregivers and family members help survivors gain skills, confidence, and options, rather than taking control away from them. Supporters should aim to teach, enable, and empower. This means explaining risks clearly, offering practical help when asked, and respecting the person’s choices even when those choices carry risk.

This chapter will go over how to support women with disabilities in protecting against and preventing TFGBV from occurring. Not all women with disabilities will require this level of guidance or support.

Prevention work sits at three levels: the individual (skills and habits), the relationship (boundaries and trust), and the environment (policies, community resources, and accessible technology). Effective prevention combines small daily practices with longer‑term learning and community supports.

Teach, and Avoid Control

Teaching focuses on showing how tools work and why certain steps help. It avoids doing everything for the person and stripping autonomy.

Explain privacy and security simply. If needed, show how privacy settings, two‑factor authentication (2FA), and strong passwords protect accounts.

Practice scam identification. Review a few common scam messages together and point out red flags (requests for money, urgent demands, requests for codes). We have included a few examples below:

• “You’re the only one I trust. I lost access to my bank after an emergency… can you send $500 now? Don’t tell anyone, it’s private.”
• “We detected suspicious activity. Click this link and enter the 6‑digit code we just sent you to secure your account.”
• “This is the billing department. You owe $1,200. Pay via gift card or we will disconnect service today.”
• “Your computer is infected. Install this remote‑access tool so we can fix it now.”

Help set up safety features with consent. For example, offer to set up 2FA or change passwords… But only if the person agrees and understands what you are doing.

Provide resources. Share accessible guides, local workshops, or helplines the person can use later. We have provided several throughout this book, if you wish to use them.

When you are teaching, use accessible language, repeat steps, and check understanding. If your role as a supporter is to teach a someone with a disability who uses assistive technology, aim to do a check of whether the different tools and methods work alongside these technologies.

Supporting autonomy without taking over

Friends and family must balance safety with respect for independence.

Ask before acting. Offer help, but do not seize devices or change settings without consent unless there is immediate danger.

Offer choices. For example: “I can set up 2FA for you now, or I can show you how and we can do it together.”

Model healthy digital behaviour yourself. Show how you set boundaries online and how you respond to suspicious messages.

Practice boundary language. Help the person rehearse short phrases: “I don’t share passwords,” “I will check with a friend before sending money,” or “I don’t have to respond right away.”

These practices build trust and reduce the chance that support becomes control.

Encourage safe exploration and digital confidence

People learn best by doing. Encourage safe, supported exploration of apps and services so the person can use technology without fear.

• Introduce disability‑friendly apps and settings that improve accessibility (screen readers, voice commands, simplified interfaces).
• Point to safe online communities where people with similar experiences share tips.
• Support practice of everyday tasks: sending messages, checking account notifications, and recognizing suspicious links.
• Frame mistakes as learning opportunities to reduce shame and build resilience.

Encouraging exploration helps the person feel powerful online rather than afraid.

Creating safer digital habits

Small, regular habits reduce risk over time. These routines should be collaborative and respectful. If your loved one is able to do these actions on their own or without support and wishes to do so, please respect that.

• Regular device checkups (with permission). This is dependent on the needs of your loved one. In cases where it would be best for a support person to help navigate devices, you can ask permission from the device owner to review installed apps, recent logins, and unfamiliar settings together.
• Use strong, memorable passwords and a simple password manager if appropriate (see Chapter 6).
• Enable 2FA on important accounts and explain how codes work (see Chapter 6).
• Keep software updated to reduce vulnerabilities.
• Limit sharing of sensitive information and practice saying “no” to requests for photos, codes, or money.
• Make a short routine: a consensual, weekly check of device settings and account activity that is lead by the survivor.

Disability‑inclusive considerations

Prevention must be accessible. For people with disabilities, tailor all approaches to their needs.

• Use assistive tech‑compatible security tools (e.g., 2FA via voice call if SMS is inaccessible).
• Provide audio or large‑print guides, or demonstrate steps verbally while the person follows on their device.
• Ensure any password manager or security app works with screen readers or other assistive tools.
• Address dependency risks: if a caregiver manages devices, create a plan that preserves the person’s privacy and control where possible.

Design safety routines that the person can maintain independently or with trusted, trained support. We recommend that you co-design a safety plan alongside them, which we provide in Chapter 10: Staying Safe Online, and in our online resources folder.

Community and systemic actions

Friends and families are important, but prevention also needs community supports.

• Encourage participation in local digital literacy workshops and peer support groups.
• Advocate for accessible banking practices and fraud protections for people with disabilities.
• Support organizations that provide specialized help for TFGBV survivors, including legal and psychosocial services.
• Share knowledge in community spaces so more people can spot scams and support one another.

Collective action reduces isolation and strengthens safety nets. It’s also important for you and other support people to share the task of improving technology-based safety and protection.

One person cannot hold the entire responsibility of online safety; engaging in community and publicly available support and resources is a great way to redistribute this burden.