Yesterday morning the administrators of “Phica.eu” closed the site. The postal police are now on the hunt for members, who in some cases instigated to commit crimes, here’s what they risk.
After the closure of the sexist website phica.eu, in which Hundreds of users published compromising photos of women without their consent, including images produced by artificial intelligence of famous peoplehas now hunting off to those who, in recent years, posted comments that are obscene or that they instigated to commit crimes.
The facts
The repeated reports to the postal police seem to have convinced the administrators of Phica.eu to close the doorsan operation carried out yesterday morning. As known, in fact, the platform hosted photos and videos illegally subtracted from hundreds of women, including political exponents, TG1 journalists, actresses, singers such as Valentina Parisse and show characters, including some fictitious generated by artificial intelligence, as in the case of the premier Giorgia Meloniof the secretary of the Democratic Party Elly Schlein or of the deputy secretary of the League Roberto Vannacci.
The administrators of the site, in a press release, accused “people who use the platforms incorrectly”, complaining of not having managed “to block all those toxic behaviors in time”. According to the managers, in over 20 years they would always collaborate with the Italian and international law enforcement officers.
Possible crimes
The users of the site are mainly risking the accusation of aggravated defamation Pursuant to article 595 of the criminal code. When defamation takes place through mass media as the Internet, the expected sentence is imprisonment from six months to three years or a fine of not less than 516 euros.
The Cassation has established that it is an aggravated hypothesis because the conduct is potentially able to reach an indefinite number of people.
In the most serious cases, the accusation of instigation to criminal According to article 414 of the criminal code. This crime is configured when someone publicly instigates to commit crimes. The penalties are rather severe: imprisonment from one to five years if it is instigation to commit crimes. Imprisonment of up to a year or fine of up to 206 euros for instigation to commit fines.
The penalty has increased if the fact is committed through IT or electronic tools, as in the case of phica.eu.
For offensive comments aimed at institutional personalities such as Giorgia Meloni and Elly Schleinthe crime of vilification provided for by article 290 of the criminal code. Those who publicly vilify the Republic, the legislative assemblies, the government or other institutional offices are punished with a fine from 1,000 to 5,000 euros. The Cassation clarified that the offense posted on social networks also integrates the crime.
For the publication of intimate images without consentinstead applies Article 612-ter of the Criminal Code (Revenge Porn), introduced in 2019. Also in this case, the penalties are very severe: imprisonment from one to six years and a fine from 5,000 to 15,000 euros
The penalty has increased if the crime is committed through IT or electronic tools. Even those who receive and then further spread the material risks the same penalties.
In addition to criminal sanctions, users risk heavy civil consequences. Victims can request compensation for property damage deriving from economic losses and for non -pecuniary damage that includes moral and psychological damage.
The minister for the family and equal opportunities Eugenia Roccella has announced that it will take on “specific initiatives for monitoring situations of this type, reporting to the competent authorities and the identification of the most effective tools for the contrast of this barbarism of the third millennium“.
