Secret tracking devices are used by men to stalk women in São Paulo
Men are using discreet tracking devices, popularly called “tags”, which are camouflaged in vehicles, bags, backpacks and even children’s objects. The objective is to monitor daily life and pursue women in the capital of São Paulo.
After a report detailing this practice on Tuesday (23), the Public Security Secretariat (SSP) confirmed that the use of these devices in a hidden manner can be classified as a crime of persecution, known legally as stalking.
Stalking consists of the repeated persecution of a person, creating a threat to their physical or psychological integrity, limiting their freedom or violating their privacy. The law establishes a penalty of six months to two years of imprisonment, in addition to a fine, for anyone who commits such an offense.
The SSP indicated that the concealment of trackers in personal items can be classified in article 147-A of the Penal Code, referring to the crime of stalking. The state administration of Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans) ensured that there is continuous monitoring of records of persecution and other infractions linked to violence against women.
Legislation against obsessive stalking completes five years
Investigators and experts have observed a significant increase in reports of women discovering that they are being monitored using tracking devices hidden in their everyday belongings.
This equipment, as small as a coin and sold for less than 100 reais, makes it possible to monitor the victim’s movements in real time without them noticing the surveillance.
Although there is no official data that specifically quantifies the use of these devices, the cases identified are commonly recorded as persecution, or stalking.
As reported by the SSP, there was an increase in records of this type of occurrence at the 1st Women’s Defense Police Station (DDM), located in Cambuci, central region of the city, during the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period in 2025.
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Actions by the Public Security Secretariat in defense of women
In a note, the Public Security Secretariat highlighted that it maintains a series of integrated public programs aimed at protecting women, including campaigns to encourage reporting and strengthening its specialized service network. The objective is to motivate victims to register incidents and thus break cycles of violence.
The secretariat pointed out that the state of São Paulo has 144 Women’s Defense Police Stations (DDMs) and 220 DDM rooms. The support structure also includes the Lilás Cabin, a service point at the Military Police Operations Center (Copom), which has already provided 29,600 assistances up to May this year, including calls by telephone 190, guidance and police actions.
In the technological segment, the ministry highlighted the SP Mulher Segura application, which offers geolocation tools and monitors aggressors who use electronic ankle bracelets. According to SSP, the platform has more than 61 thousand active users and has already totaled more than 16.6 thousand activations of the panic button.
The secretariat announced that electronic monitoring of aggressors is in the expansion phase. Currently, 434 individuals are monitored by the system, with 221 of these cases related to episodes of domestic violence.
Since the implementation of the measure, 136 people have been detained for not complying with the established protective measures, according to information from the ministry.
Understand the definition and penalty of the crime of stalking
The crime of stalking, known by the English terminology stalking, was added to the Brazilian Penal Code in 2021. It is characterized by the action of someone who repeatedly pursues another person, causing threats to their physical or mental integrity, restricting their freedom or violating their privacy.
The penalty for this offense varies from six months to two years in prison, plus a fine. The penalty can be increased under certain conditions, such as when the victim is a woman.
