NSW has introduced reforms targeting covert stalking and the misuse of tracking devices in certain domestic violence and organised crime contexts. If you’ve received a police visit, a charge notice, or an apprehended violence order (AVO) related to surveillance or tracking behaviour, the legal landscape has changed around you, and it changed faster than most people realise.
Here’s what the reforms actually say, who they affect, and what your rights are if you’re now caught up in them.
When Did Convert Stalking Laws Change In NSW
The Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 passed the NSW Parliament in May 2026. Premier of NSW Chris Minns explained:
“The truth is technology is being weaponised against women, and our laws have not kept pace. These reforms change that. For the first time, covert stalking through tracking devices will be a criminal offence, giving police the powers they need to intervene and crack down.
Noone should have to discover they have been monitored for months or years with no legal recourse.”
The most significant change is this: It is now a criminal offence to covertly monitor a person using a tracking or surveillance device, even if that person never knew they were being watched.
Before this reform, the existing stalking offence under the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 (NSW) required that the victim fear physical or mental harm. Where stalking is conducted covertly, that fear may not be provable, the victim may simply never know the conduct is occurring. The new laws address that directly.
The new covert stalking offence covers conduct where a person is unaware they are being monitored, and the conduct would reasonably be considered capable of causing fear of physical or mental harm if it were known.
What is now an offence under the new laws:
- Covertly tracking or monitoring a person without their knowledge using a surveillance device
- Directing a third party to conduct stalking on your behalf
- Promoting the unlawful use of surveillance devices, including advertising a device in a way that encourages unlawful use
Why These Laws Were Introduced
The NSW Crime Commission’s Project Hakea report identified a clear pattern: tracking and surveillance devices were being used to facilitate domestic and family violence and, in some cases, to assist organised criminal networks.
The Government’s response targeted that gap directly. The previous law protected people from stalking they could see and respond to. The new law addresses stalking they would never have known about.
That is a meaningful extension of criminal liability, and it has consequences for anyone who has installed tracking software on a partner’s phone, placed a GPS device on a vehicle, or directed someone else to conduct surveillance on their behalf, whether or not they considered it harmful at the time.
What This Means For You
If you have been charged under the new provisions:
Under the new covert stalking offence, the prosecution does not need to establish that the other person was aware of the conduct or experienced fear, the offence is framed around what the conduct would reasonably be capable of causing if known. That is a different evidentiary test from the existing stalking offence, and it matters to how these charges are built and contested.
What this means in practice: the elements of the charge, the circumstances of the alleged surveillance, and whether any lawful justification exists all need to be examined carefully and early. These are not charges to navigate without specialist legal advice.
If you have received an AVO alongside a charge:
Apprehended domestic violence orders are commonly issued alongside new stalking charges. An AVO can affect your right to live in your home, see your children, and continue working in certain fields. Contesting an AVO and defending the associated criminal charge require coordinated strategy from the outset.
If police have contacted you but no charge has been laid:
Anything you say to police in this context can be used in evidence. You are entitled to decline to answer questions and to speak with a lawyer first. That right exists regardless of whether you believe you have done anything wrong.
The Bail Changes: What to Know
The bill also aims to make bail harder in serious domestic violence matters, with electronic monitoring for those granted bail. Where a person is accused of a serious domestic violence offence and bail is granted, Corrective Services NSW will administer the electronic monitoring.
This represents a tightening of conditions at the serious end of domestic violence charges. If you are facing a bail application in this context, the preparation of that application matters more than it did 12 months ago. Demonstrating suitable accommodation, absence of prior breaches, and genuine compliance history are all now more likely to influence the outcome.
If you need urgent advice about a bail application, contact our office immediately on (02) 9261 4281.
Read our successful criminal case studies.
How O’Brien Criminal and Civil Solicitors Can Help: Defamation Lawyers
Our team at O’Brien Criminal and Civil Solicitors have represented people charged with domestic violence offences, stalking, and AVO matters in the NSW courts for over 25 years. Peter holds Specialist Accreditation in Criminal Law from the NSW Law Society, one of the highest formal recognitions available to a NSW criminal lawyer.
We advise people charged under the new covert stalking provisions, assist with contested AVO applications, and represent clients at all stages of the NSW bail process, including urgent bail applications.
If you have been charged, contacted by police, or served with an AVO, the earlier you get advice the better placed you are. Call us on (02) 9261 4281.
