Deepfake Videos Impersonate Italian Leaders in Cryptocurrency Scam
Deepfake videos impersonating Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and President Sergio Mattarella were used to advertise fraudulent cryptocurrency investment schemes that defrauded consumers. Consob, Italy's financial regulator, blocked the advertisements and removed the deceptive websites.
What happened
Deepfake videos impersonating Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and President Sergio Mattarella were published on websites and platforms advertising fraudulent cryptocurrency investment platforms. One deepfake video featured the fake Meloni announcing a 'guaranteed income of 40,000 euros per month' through a platform claiming to have state licensing and central bank backing.
The scam followed an established fraud scheme where victims were guided through phone calls to make an initial deposit of 250 euros to foreign, untraceable companies. Victims would then see fictitious gains on the platform and be encouraged by a 'personal assistant' to invest additional money before withdrawing.
Reported impact
The deepfake videos were described as 'sophisticated' enough to constitute a real danger to consumers' finances. Victims who attempted to withdraw their purported gains found the personal assistant disappeared and the company became unreachable.
Index analysis
Consob identified this as the first time the regulator blocked advertisements of this type, applying new powers granted under the 'capital law' to order telecommunications service providers to remove sites and content advertising unauthorized financial activities.
Governance controls
Consob blocked the advertisements for these unauthorized financial services and obscured four additional deceptive websites. This action marked the first application of the new capital law powers granting Consob authority to compel removal of such content.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.