AI & Tech · Rome and Boston

Italian and US authorities block deepfake porn site cFake.com, PM Meloni and other public figures among victims

Italian police, with US Homeland Security, shut down the 19-year-old platform cFake.com, which hosted thousands of non-consensual fake explicit images and videos of female politicians and celebrities including Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

AI text based on reports by Fanpage, Rai news, Tgcom24 and other publishers. Published . How it is made

For membersThe first 30 seconds for everyone. Synthetic voice (AI).

In brief

Rome, Boston · Italy, United States
How it came to this
  1. October 2025Italian Postal Police open investigation after multiple reports.
  2. November 2025Rome judge orders preventive seizure and blocking of the site for Italian users.
  3. 13 JunFull takedown executed; site replaced by a block notice from US and French agencies.

The platform and its victims

cFake.com launched in April 2007 and initially relied on photomontages, superimposing celebrities' faces onto pornographic images. In recent years it incorporated AI-generated deepfake images and videos. The victims identified by Italian authorities include Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, influencer Chiara Ferragni, opposition politician Elly Schlein, and singer Laura Pausini, along with many other women from politics, entertainment, sports and culture.

How the investigation unfolded

The Postal Police in Rome opened an investigation in October 2025 after receiving multiple reports. Technicians traced the servers to the United States. In November 2025, a preliminary investigations judge in Rome ordered the preventive seizure and blocking of the site for Italian users.

International cooperation and legal basis

Through international police cooperation, US Homeland Security Investigations requested the Department of Justice to issue a seizure order for the domain under the federal Take It Down Act, which came into force in May 2025 to combat non-consensual explicit content. French police also participated in the operation, according to the block screen now displayed on the site.

A long-running operation

The site operated for nearly 20 years, evolving from crude photomontages to AI-generated deepfakes. Access required an age self-declaration, and the interface was entirely in English. The takedown marks one of the most prominent enforcement actions under the Take It Down Act since its enactment.

Ask about this text

Sources and context

Places
Rome, Paris

Pollar is free and carries no ads in the text. Its members keep it going.

Support Pollar