A recent analysis of 160 deepfake websites has uncovered a widespread campaign featuring sexually explicit content depicting more than 100 politicians from 22 European countries. The study highlights that the vast majority of the individuals targeted in these AI-generated images and videos are women.
The findings, reported by Wired, underscore the growing intersection of technology and political harassment. The sheer volume of sites and the geographic spread across the continent suggest a coordinated or systemic abuse of generative AI tools to degrade public figures.
While the report does not identify specific perpetrators, the data points to a significant threat to political discourse and personal safety. Advocates for digital rights have long warned about the potential for non-consensual deepfakes to be used as weapons against women in the public eye, and this analysis provides concrete evidence of the scale of that problem in Europe.
The discovery has reignited calls for stricter regulations on AI-generated content and better legal protections for politicians and other public figures facing online abuse. As deepfake technology becomes more accessible, experts warn that similar campaigns could expand to target individuals in other regions and sectors.
Do you think stricter regulations will actually stop this, or just push the content to harder-to-moderate corners of the web?
This is terrifying. The scale suggests this isn’t just a few angry individuals, but organized harassment targeting women in politics.