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Meloni exposes deepfake
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni shared a deepfake image of herself being circulated online to denounce what she called a “dangerous” trend in AI-generated falsehoods. In the episode, Meloni posted the altered image on her Facebook page on Tuesday, along with a screenshot of a user identified as “Roberto,” who had reshared it with the claim that she should be “ashamed.” Meloni said in her post, “Deepfakes are a dangerous tool because they can deceive, manipulate and target anyone. I can defend myself. Many others cannot,” framing the incident as more than a personal attack. She added, “I must admit that whoever created them, at least in the attached case, has also improved me quite a bit,” while warning that “just to attack and invent falsehoods, nowadays anything at all is used.”
“Deepfakes are a dangerous tool because they can deceive, manipulate and target anyone. I can defend myself. Many others cannot”
Opponents and regulators
Meloni said the fake lingerie image was being shared by political opponents in an apparent attempt to turn voters against her, and she urged people to be wary of the “dangerous” tech trend. On X, she said, “Deepfakes are a dangerous tool, because they can deceive, manipulate, and strike anyone. I can defend myself. Many others cannot.” She also pushed a rule for audiences, telling people, “verify before believing, and believe before sharing. Because today it happens to me, tomorrow it can happen to anyone.” The warning came as the European Union investigates tech companies for giving users access to AI tools that enable the creation of nude and other images, and as British regulator Ofcom warned of a rise in fake images.
Legal fight and AI rules
Meloni’s public warning also sits alongside an ongoing legal dispute tied to manipulated images, after she launched a libel suit two years ago against a man from Sardinia accused of making deepfake pornographic images using her face and posting them online. The case is still ongoing, and Meloni’s latest comments were made after fake images of her circulated online and were portrayed as real. In parallel, Italy’s government has positioned the fight against AI deepfakes as part of its policy agenda, with the country becoming the first EU member to approve a comprehensive law regulating the use of AI last September. That legislation introduced prison terms for those who deploy the technology to cause harm, including the creation of deepfakes, and placed limits on children’s access. The European Union also began work last November on new rules for tech companies to govern how AI content is produced so it can be “marked,” with the regime described as a “voluntary instrument” under EU law that will not apply until August 2026.
“Meloni launched a libel suit two years ago against a man from Sardinia who is accused of making deepfake pornographic images”
