NSW to criminalise secret GPS tracking after misuse in domestic violence cases

Australia’s New South Wales government plans to make covert GPS tracking illegal after a report found that tracking devices were frequently purchased by domestic violence offenders.

The move follows a case in regional NSW in which a man used a GPS tracker to monitor his wife for weeks before fatally shooting her and then taking his own life. Authorities said the surveillance was part of a broader pattern of coercive control aimed at preventing the victim from leaving the relationship.

A review known as Project Hakea found that a quarter of people who bought tracking devices since early 2023 had a history of domestic violence. It also found that 82% of cases involving the unlawful use of tracking devices between 2010 and 2023 were linked to domestic abuse.

Under the proposed law, secretly tracking someone without their knowledge would become a criminal offence if it could reasonably cause fear of physical or psychological harm. The legislation would also ban people from hiring others to stalk someone and prohibit the promotion of surveillance devices for illegal purposes.

Premier Chris Minns said technology was increasingly being used as a tool to control and intimidate women, while existing laws had failed to keep pace. The reform builds on earlier domestic violence measures introduced in NSW, including tougher bail laws and the criminalisation of coercive control.