Women are more fearful of deep faking than 'revenge porn,' research finds

Deepfaking has made headlines recently with explicit non-consensual images being created of public figures such as Taylor Swift and Bobbi Althoff.

But it's not just celebrities who are at risk from the advancement of deepfake technology, this affects all women.

In fact, women in the UK feel deep faking is a bigger threat to their online safety than so-called ‘revenge porn’, new research by GLAMOUR revealed this week.

Conducted in partnership with Rape Crisis England & Wales and Refuge, the study found that 91 per cent of respondents think deepfaking poses a threat to the safety of women, compared to 40 per cent of respondents who fear image-based sexual abuse, or so-called ‘revenge porn’.

The survey* of 3,865 national UK women was carried out by a Savanta study and an additional GLAMOUR research panel, asking respondents a wide range of single, multiple-choice and write-in questions on topics covering sex, consent and digital consent.

Harrowing statistics were uncovered by the study on women’s experiences of rape and sexual assault with nearly half (43 per cent) reporting that they have been sexually assaulted - over a fifth (21 per cent) of those who have been sexually assaulted admitting to feeling like they could not report the incident to the police and almost a quarter (23 per cent) of respondents reporting that they have been raped.

Shockingly, only 9 per cent of GLAMOUR readers could recall being taught about sexual consent by the education system in the UK.

Of those who do remember being formally educated on sexual consent, just under half (47 per cent) think it properly equipped them to understand what sexual consent is.

The survey results will inform a new GLAMOUR Talks Consent campaign in partnership with Refuge and Rape Crisis England & Wales, which aims to empower women on all matters relating to consent, from increasing awareness of the topic in UK education systems to interrogating current legislation in place to protect women.

Deborah Joseph, GLAMOUR’s European Editorial Director, said: ”Considering the almost-daily news headlines on the sexual violence women experience, the results of this survey are sadly not surprising, although truly heartbreaking.

"Our new GLAMOUR Talks Consent campaign hopes to tackle the real fears women have surrounding consent and digital consent, looking at how we can be better protected both in society and online.

"We feel truly supported by our partners Rape Crisis and Refuge and look forward to working together to bring about meaningful change.”

On Wednesday (February 28) , Deborah Joseph co-hosted a roundtable discussion at the Houses of Parliament with The Rt Hon Greg Clark, the Conservative MP for Tunbridge Wells and Chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.

Following the launch of the GLAMOUR Talks Consent campaign, the conversation on digital consent and the threat of deepfaking to women will be the first of many of the campaign's initiatives.

Emma Pickering, Head of Technology-Facilitated Abuse and Economic Empowerment at Refuge, said: “Technology facilitated abuse can often be more insidious and harder to spot than other types of domestic abuse but it is equally rooted in coercive control. The rate at which this type of crime, including ‘deep-faking’ and other forms of intimate image abuse, is now concerning women on a mass scale is truly alarming.

“There is very little education out there about digital consent and this type of domestic abuse, so we must raise the alarm and act now as these forms of abuse are impacting women on an unprecedented scale. As new technologies evolve and become cheaper and more accessible, perpetrators equip themselves with new technological weapons to harm women.”

Ciara Bergman, CEO at Rape Crisis England & Wales, said: "Engaging young people in discussions about consent is critical.

“With only 9% of Glamour readers recalling being informed about consent whilst in education in the UK, it's clear that reforms are needed - more than ever - to ensure that young people receive appropriate education and guidance about what constitutes consent, and healthy relationships - something Rape Crisis England & Wales have long called for.

"Ultimately, work to prevent and intervene with perpetration is vital, if sexual violence and abuse is to be reduced. We are concerned that this very significant gap within education has not been meaningfully addressed, and is still not on the agenda of policy-makers."

The full GLAMOUR Talks Consent survey results can be viewedhere.

How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel

Sign up to our free indy100 weekly newsletter

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.