One click, lifetime damage: when artificial intelligence (AI) attacks bodies
While deepfakes are more of a social phenomenon and therefore do not always have a negative impact, deep nudes, on the other hand, clearly cause enormous damage. These are not just faked images, but a direct attack on the privacy and dignity of citizens, which affects them personally.
Singer Taylor Swift and actress Emma Watson have been confronted with it, as has former Miss Belgium Céline Van Outsel, who has already testified about these abusive practices.
Deep nudes are a specific use of deepfake technology. The images, both photos and videos, are generated and/or manipulated by AI and look real, but are not. This is the manipulation of body images for which no consent has been given. The right to one's image and the right to privacy are strictly regulated. Deep nudes are therefore a serious violation of this legislation. In addition, they undermine the integrity and dignity of the victim. Undressing a person "digitally" or manipulating a video using artificial intelligence to give the impression that a person is performing acts of a sexual nature falls under the legal notion of "voyeurism".
In 2024, the University of Antwerp, Child Focus and the Institute for the Equality of Women and Men conducted a study on deep nudes among Belgian teenagers aged 15 to 25. The survey found that 42% of them had already heard of deep nudes, 23% had seen such images, 13% were aware of applications to generate them, 14% had already received one, and nearly8% had owned them. They were the first to be able to
What to do if you are a victim?
The victims feel guilty. They are ashamed. In addition, they often doubt that the facts are "serious enough" to file a complaint or think that they could have done something to avoid them. This sometimes pushes some young people to suicide.
This is why it is important for victims to know that they are in no way responsible, unlike the perpetrators.
There are three steps that deep nude victims can take:
- Don't keep it to yourself and talk about it with people you trust. It is possible to call on professional services in this field, a victim support service for example.
- Carefully gather all evidence. Do not continue to share or disseminate the photos, certainly not online.
- Contact the police as soon as possible to file a complaint with the evidence collected.
Who can you turn to?
There are contact points where you can report this violation online.
Minors can contact Child Focus 24/7 via the toll-free number 116 000. As for adults, they can contact the Institute for the Equality of Women and Men.
There are also the Sexual Violence Support Centres, 1712, which is the helpline for questions relating to violence and abuse, and 103Ecoute, which is dedicated to children and young people.
Avoid deep nude applications
The creation and dissemination of these images is a criminal offence and can also be prosecuted as identity fraud. Apart from the fact that they violate a person's privacy and are therefore an offence, these apps are also very insecure. These programs very often contain malware or spyware that can infect your computer and smartphone.
Even if you're not a victim, you can help fight deep nudes. Have you come across such images or discovered apps that allow you to generate deep nudes? Report them!
European legislation
On Thursday, March 26, 2026, the European Parliament took an important step regarding these apps. It voted by a large majority in favor of simplifying the AI Act. These include banning AI systems that can generate sexually explicit images without the consent of the data subject, such as Grok. In late 2025, Elon Musk's artificial intelligence chatbot launched another feature to create images of nude people from existing photos, including minors, and share them via X. A lawsuit against Grok has already been won in the Netherlands.
The question arises as to whether these measures will make it possible to eradicate the phenomenon. There is a chance that illegal apps will move to the dark web or Telegram, although the latter are a bit more difficult to access. In any case, this new European legislation sends a signal that the phenomenon of deep nudes is not acceptable.
Basic Differences Between Deepfakes and Deep nudes
What is it?
- Deepfakes: An umbrella term for images, videos, or sounds generated or manipulated by AI that appear real but are not
- Deep nudes: subcategory of deepfakes dedicated to the manipulation of images of a person's body without their consent
Scope
Deepfakes: a very broad concept, which can include videos, audio, images, voices, faces, etc.
Deep nudes: very restricted and specific
Objective/Context
Deepfakes: These can be artistic or satirical initiatives (positive), or fraud, misinformation, and scams (negative)
Deep nudes: ALWAYS harmful, invasion of privacy and human dignity
Legal/Ethical Framework
Deepfakes: depending on the context, their use may be legal (e.g., in art)
Deep nudes: still problematic, even punishable
Casualties
Deepfakes: in the case of a negative context, it is not always a question of individual victims
Deep nudes: There's always a concrete victim
Impact on society
Deepfakes: distrust of the media, impact on democracy and security
Deep nudes: significant personal and psychosocial damage is caused
