An Italian website that posted doctored images of well-known women, including Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with obscene commentary, has announced its closure after a backlash from other female politicians.
The explicit site called Phica, a play on the Italian slang for vagina, now displays a message saying it has shut down 'with great regret' due to the 'toxic behavior' of some users.
Meloni herself has said she is 'disgusted' by the site and called for those responsible to be punished 'with the utmost firmness'.
The removal of Phica comes days after celebrity figures led a wave of public anger against an Italian Facebook group called Mia Moglie (My Wife), where thousands of men had been swapping intimate images of their partners apparently without their knowledge.
Those pictures were posted with explicit or even violent comments, with users said to include former politicians, businessmen, and police officers. Meta has since closed down the group for 'violating our adult sexual exploitation policies'.
Phica was a far bigger operation, said to have some 700,000 users, and had been active for two decades despite previous complaints. Its so-called VIP section contained photos of female Italian politicians and other prominent figures, from actresses to influencers, taken either from public appearances or lifted from personal social media accounts.
The images, including beach shots in swimwear, were digitally altered before being posted in albums with titles like 'hot politicians' with other suggestive and sexist captions, prompting vulgar commentary beneath.
Alessandra Moretti, an MEP who spoke out against the site, claims it also included incitement to rape. Images were altered and then pushed out to users, she told the BBC. 'This was followed by a flood of obscene comments that have not only harmed my emotional well-being but also endangered the safety of many women,' said the MEP from the opposition Democratic Party.
Moretti believes that prominent political figures like her have a duty to take a stand and speak out for other women who are being targeted. 'Platforms that incite rape and violence must be shut down and banned. Violence breeds violence and it's time to put an end to it.'
Phica's statement announcing its closure blamed users who it said had perverted the 'spirit and original purpose' of the platform, claiming that it had been intended for those who wanted to 'share their content in a safe environment'.
But it accepted that the platform had become something people 'wanted to distance themselves from, not be proud of', and pledged that all content would now be deleted. The statement was illustrated with emoji-like images of tears and ended with the words 'See you soon.'
Italy's Postal Police, who deal with cyber-crime, have confirmed to the BBC that an investigation has been launched.
Phica said it had always blocked and reported all forms of violence and images of minors. However, a petition for its closure on Change.org, which collected close to 170,000 signatures, pointed out that it had included pictures of people taken secretly in changing rooms and beauty salons 'or filmed by hidden microcameras in public bathrooms'.
It is disheartening to note that in 2025, there are still those who consider it normal and legitimate to trample on a woman's dignity and target her with sexist and vulgar insults, hiding behind anonymity or a keyboard, said Meloni to Corriere della Sera. She also urged women to report any images that were being shared without their consent.
