<< Background >>According to the EU Commission's 2020-2025 Gender Equality Strategy, Gender-based violence – or violence that is directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately – remains one of our societies’ biggest challenges and is deeply rooted in gender inequality. An emerging form of violence is cyber violence which is especially prevalent due to COVID-19 lockdowns. Cyber violence is a gender-based issue, as it affects women disproportionately (European Institute for Gender Equality, 2017). In the European Union, 1 in 10 women reports having experienced cyber violence since the age of 15 as reported in Fundamental Rights’ Agency (FRA) 2014 survey. Responses, however, have yet to fully address the many degrees and impact of violence, trauma and loss that women and girls are routinely exposed to due to cyber violence and that go unreported (UN Women, 2015). Cyber violence is not a separate phenomenon, but rather a continuum of offline violence (EIGE, 2017). Studies have shown that survivors of online sexual violence suffer from a number of mental health issues following their assault. They have trouble trusting, show signs of post-traumatic stress disorder and suffer from anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts. These findings reveal the seriousness of online sexual violence, as well as the similarities between sexual assault and online sexual violence (Bates, 2016). The project will have two main target groups. The first target group includes youth in the 18-29 age group, as younger women are more active on the internet and therefore more exposed to cyber harassment, with that particular age group being the highest risk one (FRA, 2014). It will offer trainings in order for the victims to be able to protect themselves effectively online, strengthen the awareness and capacity of women advocates, educators, and Internet users to identify and report violence facilitated online and by other forms of ICTs, as well as provide tips, tools and resources on how to identify, document and report on-line harassment and other forms of ICT facilitated violence against women and girls. A best practices mapping will also contribute through that goal.The second target group includes the youth workers and professionals of victim support and social care services, through the creation of a training curriculum of which will be able to utilize the training material and the methodology created through the project in order to be able to recognize, effectively support and guide the victims to legal services if needed. Consequently, those services will be able to provide adequate support to the youth that need it. While the material will be tailored for the specific target groups, it will be open and available to everyone, and through its utilization by professionals it will also have a multiplier effect. In addition, the volunteers of these services will also be able to benefit from the project’s results. According to the European Commission’s Victims’ Rights Support Strategy, the victims support services importance is recognized, as it is one of the Key Actions of the Strategy to declare them as essential<< Objectives >>The project has the following concrete objectives:1. To contribute to the prevention, recognition and early intervention against Cyber GBV2. Raise the capacity of youth workers and victim support services to be able to respond to the specific needs of victims of cyber GBV, through an innovative and transferrable training curriculum3. To enhance the digital skills of the target groups in order to be able to protect themselves online, as well as empower them to seek assistance and take other action to break the cycle of online and offline violence4. To raise awareness on the phenomenon5. Engage professionals of different countries in combating cyber GBV6. To provide knowledge of best practices and effective actions implemented on preventing and providing support for Cyber Gender-Based Violence7. Contribute to a more inclusive cyberspace<< Implementation >>The project will lead to the creation of:1. An Online Hub against cyber GBV2. Best practices mapping on an EU level3. Digital Handbook on cyber GBV for youth4. A Training Curriculum for Victim Support Services and Youth Workers5. A Self Evaluation in the form of an interactive quiz6. A Final Research PaperIn addition, 4 transnational meetings are going to be held, with 2 of them taking place in person and 2 of them online. 3 Multiplier Events will take place in Bulgaria, Cyprus and Greece in order to share the projects results and contribtute in raising awareness on the phenomenon.<< Results >>Upon the completion of the 23 month project the participants of both target groups are going to be able to:•Have accurate knowledge of cyber GBV: definition, detection, prevention & intervention, through the training curriculum and the handbook designed.•Develop their digital skills in order to be able to protect themselves and their identities online•Recognize abusive behaviors they are being subject to•Be aware which instances of online harassment constitute a crime, how to report it and where they can seek assistance•Self-evaluate their online competences, through the online evaluation system hosted on the platform•Be aware of best practices in the field of cyber GBV, by utilizing the mapping that will be completed during the project•Recognize the real-life ramifications and implications that cyber GBV causes.Specific outcomes for the professionals of victim support services and youth workers:•Capacity to provide adequate and targeted support to victims of cyber GBV•Ability to recognize whether women that come in contact with them are also victims of cyber GBV apart from offline violence•Ability to respond appropriately to cyber violence in intimate relationships – differentiate between cyber violence by unknowns•Be able to guide victims through the necessary (legal) steps.•Increased motivation for professional training and skills development•Better teamwork among professionals•Awareness of best practices and ability to adopt those deemed appropriate in their own work.In addition, the final research paper that will provide data on the effectiveness of the project’s interventions. Through the involvement of the victim support services, the project will be able to gather bodies of data that include the profiles of perpetrators, their relationship with the victim, the means of perpetrations, the number of reported cases, which will be able to inform future projects, research and policy making.The project’s outcomes will also expand beyond the direct target groups by increasing awareness of the phenomenon in local communities and stakeholders. In addition to the intellectual outputs, the project will hold an awareness campaign that will take place online and inform the wider audience about the forms cyber gender-based violence can take, with a special focus on the perpetrators and those that manifest abusive behaviors online, which often happens due to insufficient The aforementioned outcomes are directly connected to the concrete objectives of the project going to be achieved through the creation of an innovative training curriculum for the professionals of victim support services and youth workers, an online handbook for the general population and the online platform which will host the material as well as the self evaluation quiz.Furthermore, the accessible online platform, in combination with the dissemination activities will contribute to cyber GBV brought into the public debate.