Online abuse of women in Italy has become an increasingly controversial crisis in recent years, prompting strong reactions from the country’s Prime Minister.
Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s Prime Minister, expressed outrage over an explicit website that published unauthorized images of women, including herself, amid nationwide protests against gender-based violence and digital abuse.
Following widespread condemnation and legal complaints, the site’s administrators took it down. In a statement, Meloni said: “I am disgusted by what happened and express my solidarity with all women who have been insulted and harassed.”
The website had been operating since 2005 and had over 200,000 registered members. In a related incident, Facebook recently removed a virtual group where users shared private images of women without their consent after a wave of public complaints. The group had more than 32,000 members.
Meloni expressed frustration that in 2025 there are still people who consider it normal to violate women’s dignity. Eugenia Roccella, Italy’s Minister for Equal Opportunities, announced that the government is working on stronger online protections and cultural reforms to combat abuse and gender-based discrimination.
A 2019 study by the University of Milan revealed that 20% of Italian women have experienced some form of non-consensual sharing of private images. In a significant legal move, the Italian Senate also approved a bill that introduces a legal definition of femicide into the penal code for the first time, mandating life imprisonment as a penalty. The bill also increases punishments for stalking, sexual violence, and the production of explicit content without consent.
Mizan News Agency