Italy PM Giorgia Meloni Pursues Legal Action Over Deepfake Videos, Seeks 100,000 Euros In Damages

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has taken legal action seeking 100,000 euros (approximately Rs 90.91 lakh) in damages after deepfake videos depicting her in explicit situations circulated, as reported by the BBC. These disturbing videos involved the manipulation of Giorgia Meloni’s image onto another person’s body in pornographic contexts.

The videos were uploaded online by two individuals, a 40-year-old man and his 73-year-old father, who now face defamation charges.

The suspects were identified through the smartphone used to upload the deepfake content. It was revealed that the videos were created in 2022, before Giorgia Meloni became the Italian Prime Minister.

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Scheduled to testify in July, Giorgia Meloni will highlight the seriousness of the issue in court. The indictment states that the illicit videos were uploaded to a pornographic website based in the United States and amassed millions of views over time.

The Italian Prime Minister’s legal representatives have clarified that any damages awarded will be donated to initiatives supporting women affected by male violence, underscoring the “symbolic” nature of the claim. Maria Giulia Marongiu, Giorgia Meloni’s lawyer, stated that the compensation demand aims to encourage victims of such abuses of power to come forward without fear of retaliation.

The damages claim is intended to “send a message to women who are victims of this kind of abuse of power not to be afraid to press charges,” reaffirmed Maria Giulia Marongiu, echoing the resolve of Giorgia Meloni’s legal team.

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Several Indian actresses, including Rashmika Mandanna and Katrina Kaif, were also victims of deepfake videos of explicit nature late last year. The Modi government has been proactive in addressing the issue, with Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Rajeev Chandrasekhar stating that the IT ministry and the Centre will nominate a rule seven officer and ensure 100% compliance from all platforms to combat synthetic content and deepfakes online.