Female politicians in Europe are being targeted by AI-powered 'nudifier' apps that can create fake sexualised images from ordinary photographs, with 46 women among 50 members of the European Parliament identified in new research as being targeted or associated with the technology.
The findings, published on Monday by German digital democracy think tank Agora Digital Transformation, highlight the growing scale of non-consensual AI pornography targeting women in politics and come less than two months before the European Union's ban on AI systems designed to generate non-consensual intimate material is due to take effect on 2 December.
Women MEPs Face Disproportionate AI Abuse
The latest research found that 50 members of the European Parliament had been targeted by or associated with digital platforms capable of generating sexualised imagery, including 46 women.
The research examined up to 200 domains associated with deepfake pornography and identified MEPs from seven of the European Parliament's eight political groups, spanning a broad political spectrum.
The findings highlight that exposure does not necessarily mean every politician identified had an explicit deepfake actively hosted online. The research also examined cases in which politicians were associated with websites or search results connected to AI nudifier tools.
A separate September study by Agora Digital Transformation examined politicians serving in national parliaments across the European Union. It found that women were disproportionately exposed to deepfake pornography, with researchers estimating that women parliamentarians were 33 times more likely than men to be depicted in or associated with such material.
The @Europarl_EN stands strong against the targeting of women by deepfake pornography websites publishing false and altered images.
— Roberta Metsola (@EP_President) October 5, 2026
Instead of humiliating us, this empowers us.
Instead of silencing us, this makes us louder.
Instead of scaring us, this makes us more determined.… pic.twitter.com/rM1IlJ6js8
That study found that one in 14 women parliamentarians covered by the research faced such exposure, compared with approximately one in 500 men. Researchers identified 138 women parliamentarians from 22 EU countries, compared with nine men, among 5,872 sitting members audited.
EU Nudifier Ban Faces Enforcement Test
The latest findings come as the European Union prepares to prohibit AI systems designed to generate realistic non-consensual intimate material, including sexually explicit images depicting identifiable people without their consent. The restriction is due to take effect from 2 December.
EU authorities are also investigating similar features associated with Grok, the AI chatbot operated by Elon Musk's X. The European Commission has confirmed receiving a letter from MEPs concerning AI-generated sexual images targeting EU politicians and said the ban will apply from December.
Researchers argue, however, that legislation alone may not eliminate the problem, particularly if enforcement pushes the activity towards other platforms or jurisdictions.
Agora's research describes the existing system as largely reactive, with victims potentially having to identify and report material after it appears. The researchers also argue that tackling the wider ecosystem requires attention to infrastructure and intermediaries involved in hosting, distributing or facilitating the technology.
The Digital Services Act and General Data Protection Regulation provide existing legal mechanisms relevant to online content and personal data, but researchers argue that these measures do not by themselves provide a comprehensive, victim-focused response to AI-generated sexualised imagery.
MEPs Demand Tougher Action
On 30 September, a cross-party alliance of 119 members of the European Parliament endorsed an open letter calling on EU leaders and member states to take decisive action against AI-generated sexualised images targeting women politicians.
The MEPs called for national authorities to be properly prepared and resourced to enforce the forthcoming prohibition from 2 December, as well as for the European Commission to move swiftly on its investigation into Grok.
Prominent signatories included Iratxe García Pérez of the Socialists, Valérie Hayer of Renew Europe and Manon Aubry of The Left.
Speaking to journalists on Monday, Austrian Greens politician Lena Schilling, who signed the appeal, stressed that 'there can't be any loopholes or delays' when the restriction is implemented.
Enforcement Must Go Beyond AI Platforms
Benjamin Shultz, a co-author of the Agora research, said public officials often cannot remove their photographs from the internet, making it difficult to prevent them from being targeted by AI undressing tools.
Shultz argued that effective enforcement should extend beyond companies directly operating nudifier services. The research calls for scrutiny of businesses and infrastructure providers that can support the sector, including payment processors and domain registrars.
The researchers also recommend investigating ways to prevent search engines from continuing to surface websites associated with AI-generated sexualised abuse.
The persistence of search results is another problem identified by the research. Shultz found that digital traces can remain visible even after websites or domains have been taken down, meaning the removal of a site does not necessarily erase its presence from the wider internet.
The broader research identified cases across seven of the eight political groups in the European Parliament, highlighting the cross-party nature of the exposure.
The findings underline how AI-generated sexualised imagery can be used as a form of digital abuse against women in public life, while the EU prepares to put its new ban on nudifier systems into effect.
