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Ex-Cyber Chief Demands Tech Firms Act on Surging Online Misogyny Against Girls
17 Nov
Summary
- Former UK cyber security chief warns of rising misogyny and sexism online
- Calls on tech firms to hire more women and design AI with girls' safety in mind
- Girlguiding survey finds 26% of girls aged 13-18 saw sexualized deepfakes
In November 2025, Felicity Oswald, the former interim chief executive and chief operating officer of the UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), is calling on social media firms to take stronger action to keep girls and young women safe online. Oswald, who recently became the new chief executive of Girlguiding, warns that the trends of misogyny and sexism are worsening rather than improving.
Oswald says that while many tech companies' staff work tirelessly to keep users safe, it is not enough. She reveals that technology firms across the world seem to be reducing the number of staff and systems focused on harmful online content. A recent Girlguiding survey of over 2,500 girls and young women found that 26% of those aged 13 to 18 have seen a sexualized deepfake of themselves, a friend, or a celebrity, which Oswald describes as "shocking."
Oswald is now urging tech companies to help stamp out misogyny and harmful content online, as well as ramp up efforts to hire more women across their organizations and in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector, where over 70% of workers are men. She believes this systemic problem needs to be addressed through both regulation and ensuring new technologies are designed with women and girls' safety in mind.
