THE Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is seeking €100,000 (£85,374) in damages after a pornographic video featuring her image was posted online.

According to the BBC, the Italian prime minister is due to testify before a court in the Sardinian town of Sassari on July 2.

A deepfake image is one where a person’s face is digitally added to another person’s body.

A 40-year-old man, who is believed to have made the videos, and his 73-year-old father are under investigation.

Police said they were able to find them by tracing the mobile device used to post the videos.

Both men are charged with defamation. Under Italian law, some defamation cases can be criminal and carry a prison sentence.

According to the indictment, the videos were posted on a US porn website, where they were viewed “millions of times” over several months.

Meloni’s legal team said that if her claim for compensation is successful, it will donate the 100,000 euros to a fund to support women who have been victims of gender-based violence.

Maria Giulia Marongiu, Meloni’s lawyer, said the amount was “symbolic” and the demand for compensation was intended to “send a message to women who are victims of this kind of abuse of power not to be afraid to press charges.”

Ms Meloni’s deepfake videos date back to before she was appointed Prime Minister in 2022.

In recent years, deepfake porn has become commonplace on the internet.