Politician Giorgia Meloni expresses disgust after an adult website publishes manipulated images featuring herself and other women
In a shocking turn of events, former Love Island contestant Cally Jane Beech and several other high-profile women, including Taylor Swift and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, have found themselves victims of deepfake sexual images on the adult website Phica.eu.
The website, which operates under the vulgar Italian slang term for female genitalia, has been a hub for such explicit content since its inception in 2005. With over 200,000 registered members, it hosted forums filled with manipulated, often intimate photos of women, including prominent Italian politicians.
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in creating these deepfakes has led to an explosion of such content. One such deepfake image of Taylor Swift, believed to have been made using AI, was viewed 47 million times before the account was suspended.
Giorgia Meloni, Italy's first female Prime Minister, expressed her disgust after unauthorized and altered images of women, including herself, were posted on the website. She stated that such websites incite rape and violence, and it is disheartening to see such behavior in 2025, where women's dignity is still being trampled upon and they are made the object of sexist and vulgar insults.
EU lawmaker Alessandra Moretti also had images published on the website and filed a criminal complaint. Influencer Chiara Ferragni was also among the women whose images were published on the website.
In response to this scandal, the British government announced a crackdown on explicit deepfakes. The website was taken down on Thursday amid widespread condemnation and legal complaints.
This incident serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of deepfakes and the need for stricter regulations to protect the privacy and dignity of individuals, particularly women, in the digital age.
