Italy PM Giorgia Meloni demands $100,000+ for deepfake video damages.

image:Reuters

Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, is pursuing €100,000 ($109,345) in damages after discovering deepfake pornographic videos featuring her circulating online. Investigators allege that two individuals, a 40-year-old man and his 73-year-old father, created and disseminated these videos by superimposing Ms. Meloni's face onto another person's body. The charges pressed against them include defamation.

Authorities were able to track down the perpetrators by tracing the smartphone used to upload the videos. The deepfake content in question dates back to 2022, preceding Ms. Meloni's tenure as Prime Minister.

In Italy, certain defamation cases carry criminal penalties, potentially resulting in imprisonment. Ms. Meloni is scheduled to provide testimony in court on July 2nd. The indictment reveals that the videos were uploaded onto a pornographic website based in the United States and garnered millions of views over several months.

While the damages sought by Ms. Meloni are primarily symbolic, her legal team has declared that any awarded compensation will be donated to support women who have endured male violence. Maria Giulia Marongiu, Ms. Meloni's lawyer, emphasized that this demand for compensation aims to encourage victims of similar abuses to come forward without fear.

Deepfake technology, which utilizes artificial intelligence to fabricate realistic audio and visual content, has raised significant concerns globally. Originating in 2017, the term "deepfake" emerged when a Reddit user established a platform for sharing pornographic videos generated using open-source face-swapping technology. Utilizing deep learning algorithms, deepfakes produce convincing but false images or videos of events or individuals. Ongoing advancements in artificial intelligence have made deepfakes increasingly realistic and widespread.

Deepfakes pose a serious threat to public trust and truthfulness. They serve as potent tools for disseminating misinformation, manipulating public opinion, and tarnishing reputations by creating convincing audio and video recordings depicting individuals engaging in activities they never actually did. Numerous world leaders have voiced apprehensions regarding the proliferation of deepfake technology and its potential adverse impacts on society.