Germany Cracks Down on Sexualized Deepfakes with New Law

Germany's Judiciary Warns of Staff Shortages in Combating Sexualized Violence

The German Judges' Association (Deutscher Richterbund) has urgently called for more personnel in law enforcement to effectively tackle sexualized violence. "As long as chronically understaffed prosecutors' offices force three investigators to do the work of four—and criminal proceedings are increasingly dropped prematurely as a result—the government is failing to fulfill its promise of protection to victims," said federal managing director Sven Rebehn.

He warned that if state finance ministers continue to refuse to strengthen underresourced prosecutors' offices, even tougher criminal laws will have little effect.

Federal Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig (SPD) is currently drafting a law against digital sexual violence, which would criminalize the creation and distribution of so-called sexualized deepfakes. The debate has gained momentum since public reports on the case of actress Collien Fernandes emerged.

"Deepfakes, sexualized digital violence, child abuse imagery, and hate crimes have reached epidemic proportions online," Rebehn said. However, he argued that piecemeal legal reforms and training programs for investigators are insufficient.

Hubig Pledges Nearly Half a Billion Euros in Funding

The judges' association chief emphasized: "Digital and sexualized violence is not a new phenomenon for prosecutors and criminal judges—one that now requires special awareness training. The problem isn't a lack of knowledge; it's glaring staff shortages in the responsible agencies that are undermining more effective prosecution of violence against women and children."

Justice Minister Hubig herself recently acknowledged the complexities of prosecuting digital crimes. "We're dealing with international corporations and networks, and new challenges keep emerging," she told Der Spiegel, admitting it is "extremely difficult to stay ahead of the curve."

To address this, she said faster, more modern procedures—and more personnel—are essential. "To that end, we intend to provide the states with nearly half a billion euros during this legislative term," the minister stated.