Locating victims of domestic violence with Emergency Danger Phones

Context

Anyone who lives in France and fears that their partner or ex-partner may cause them and/or their children to experience further abuse can request protective measures from the French justice system, even if they do not have residency rights.

The Téléphone Grave Danger (TGD) is a system set up by the Ministry of Justice to help victims of domestic violence in less than seven minutes. Equipped with an alert button, the TGD can be used to alert national police and gendarmerie units 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Article 41-3-1 of the French Code of Criminal Procedure allows the caller to be geolocated when the alert is triggered.

Solution

This solution leverages Intersec’s geolocation capabilities, helping secure hundreds of women at risk every year:

All the victim has to do is press the emergency button to alert emergency services. There's no need to call 17, wait, or even speak. Intersec's platform, integrated into Orange's network architecture, instantly provides the victim's geolocation.
Intersec's solution then forwards the precise, complete geolocation information in real time to the relevant emergency services (nearby police and marshals), enabling them to intervene without delay. This rapid response protects victims and can save lives.

The courts decide on the allocation of these phones, and hand them over to the people concerned. The system has proved its worth, and the number of TGDs allocated is increasing every year: 300 in 2019, 727 in 2020, 3,500 in 2022, and almost 5,000 in 2024.
In response to increasing concerns about domestic violence, a new law was enacted on June 13, 2024. This law introduced the provisional immediate protection order (OPPI), allowing family court judges to provide urgent protection to victims and their children. The OPPI can thus grant a TGD phone to victims. This legal framework aims to offer immediate and effective protection against domestic violence.

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We have an individual and collective responsibility to protect victims of domestic violence. Collectively, we continue to improve our operations and strengthen the involvement of our technological partners.

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Laurent Combet

Senior Manager, Orange