In this episode of SSN Spotlight, we showcase another area of innovative interdisciplinary research taking place at Deakin. Sadly, many victims of family violence are tracked, followed and harassed by current or former partners and family members. Three Deakin researchers have worked together to formulate regulatory standards for the use of ‘debugging’ devices; devices which can be employed by private individuals as well as family violence services to detect monitoring and tracking devices concealed in homes, cars, workplaces and even children’s toys.

There is a huge range of detection devices available to the public, ranging from $30 to $9000, each with different sensitivities and range of detection. Dr Diarmaid Harkin (Criminology), A/Prof Samer Hanoun (IISRI) and Dr Marilyn McMahon (Law) have teamed up as the Technology-Facilitated Family Violence Research Group to evaluate the market, technical and legal considerations of these devices respectively. You can read their full report here.

SSN Spotlight is a video series produced at the Deakin Science and Society Network, showcasing interdisciplinary research at Deakin which draws together expertise from science and the humanities. Our last video, Materials Science Meets Political Science, highlights the interdisciplinary work on supply chain ethics in Deakin’s labs, focusing on the use of Cobalt in new battery technologies. Check it out here.