Germany · de.indymedia · · 2h
Affected people across Europe: At least 147 MPs were targeted by sexualized deepfakes
Deutsch (original) · Auto-translated to English
A new study shows how politicians in Europe are affected by sexualized deepfakes. Researchers found 147 members of national parliaments on relevant deepfake sites. In the EU Parliament, 119 members are putting pressure on stricter measures.
Around 150 members of national parliaments in the EU have already been the target of sexualized deepfakes. This is what researchers from the Berlin think tank Agora Digital Transformation have foundhttps://agoradigital.de/publikationen/who-gets-deepfaked-measuring-the-e.... The non-profit organization supported by the Mercator Foundation works tohttps://agoradigital.de/ueber-uns/">digitalemChange and democracy.
As a result, 119 members of the EU Parliament are calling for onehttps://aeur.eu/f/np4">openletterstricter measures by the EU Commission and member states.
For the study, the researchers examined, among other things, well-known deepfake sites. There they searched for the names of 5,872 members of the national parliaments of all 27 EU states. In 38 cases they directly came across fake sexualized images or videos of the deputies.
They also looked for traces of content that had already been removed and for deepfake tools that invite the creation of sexualized images of those affected. In total, the researchers were able to determine that 147 MPs from 22 EU countries were the target of non-consensual, sexualized deepfakes.
Artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to create sexualized images or videos of people without their consent. So-calledhttps://netzpolitik.org/2024/ki-nacktbilder-wie-online-shops-mit-sexuali...“Nudifier” apps (undressing apps)All you need is a photo of one person.
The results of the study also show that female MPs are significantly more likely to be affected by sexualized deepfakes than male MPs. Of the 147 people affected, 138 were women and nine were men.
EU MP Lena Schilling (Greens), who comes from Austria, was also the target of sexualized deepfakes. “We were stripped against our will,”https://www.sn.at/politik/weltpolitik/147-gesetze-in-eu-opfer-von-se...she told the APA news agency. “AI increases violence against women, and that is why political decisions are needed that protect us.”
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Laws alone are not enough
The study focuses on the question of the effectiveness of existing regulations. Some of the 22 countries already have laws against deepfakes. However, according to the authors, this had no visible effect on the number of MPs affected.
In their open letter, the 119 members of the EU Parliament are calling, among other things, for clear guidelines and adequately equipped authorities so that the upcoming EU-wide ban on so-called “nudifier” apps can actually be enforced. It ishttps://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20260611IPR45207/ai-ac...the AI regulation(AI Act) and comes into effect on December 2, 2026.
However, MPs make it clear that a ban alone is not enough. “A ban on paper protects no one unless it is enforced,” it says in English. The letter was signed across parties and countries, including by German MPs Alexandra Geese (Greens), Tiemo Wölken (SPD), Martin Schirdewan (Die Linke) and Dennis Radtke (CDU).
The open letter about sexualized deepfakes continues: "This is gender-based digital violence. Its purpose is to humiliate and control women's bodies." Any young woman considering a political career today “has to take into account that something like this could happen to her.”
Agora Digital Transformation also has demands against sexualized deepfakes. The authors recommend, among other things, paying more attention to search engines. Even if deepfakes are already offline, search engines could still display corresponding search results, which has an impact on the reputation and psyche of those affected.
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Source: de.indymedia