Man arrested over 'deepfake' porn videos of Nadine Dorries and other female politicians

Thank you for subscribing!

Nadine Dorries introduced the Online Safety Act as Culture Secretary under Boris Johnson in 2021

A man has been arrested on suspicion of making "deepfake" porn videos of Nadine Dorries and other female politicians.

Police arrested a 36-year-old man after graphic AI-generated images of the former Conservative Cabinet minister were posted online.

Thames Valley Police informed Ms Dorries of the deepfakes last week, who are also investigating AI-generated images of three other female politicians and several celebrities.

The former culture secretary, who joined Reform in 2025, described experiencing "deep distress" over the fake videos, which sources told the Daily Mail as "disturbingly realistic".

She told the Daily Mail: "I was stunned and deeply distressed to receive a phone call from a senior police officer to inform me that a man had made deepfake porn videos and I was the subject – along with three other high-profile women in Westminster and a number of TV presenters."

She continued: "I was called after he had been arrested and his devices, which contained thousands of videos and images, had been seized.

"The fake videos had already been shared widely across social media and the internet.

"Due to the technology used, it's almost impossible to tell what is real and what isn't. The thought that members of my family, friends and colleagues could have seen them was mortifying."

Thames Valley Police announced it was investigating reports of deepfakes of women being published online, saying: "On December 4, 2025, a 36-year-old man from Reading was arrested on suspicion of distribution with intent to cause alarm, distress and humiliation, in connection with the investigation.

"The man was interviewed by detectives. He was later released under investigation while our enquiries are ongoing."

The investigation centres on the offence of sharing an intimate image or film of someone with intent to cause alarm, distress or humiliation, under section 66B(2) and (10) of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

The Online Safety Act, introduced by Ms Dorries during her time in Boris Johnson's Cabinet in 2021, was later amended the legislation to cover AI-generated intimate images.

There is mounting pressure to regulate AI technology to combat the generation of explicit deepfakes.

Elon Musk's Grok has come under fierce scrutiny as in January it came to light the AI tool generated three million sexualised images of people in the space of 11 days.

Jess Asato MP for Lowestoft, became a victim of Grok's capability to create sexual images after users created a fake video of her being drugged in preparation for sexual assault, an image of her in a bikini and her being pregnant in a kitchen.

She announced in June she was suing X's owner, xAI, in the High Court under the Data Protection Act for misusing private information.

She said at the time: "Me going public is so that we can invite people who may have been victims of AI photo manipulation on Grok to come forward and to seek legal help… to give people a sort of sense that they’re not alone when this happens."

The MP previously aimed criticism of Mr Musk and his company at the start of the year after it was found users could "nudify" images of real children and women.

Legislation was introduced earlier this year banning AI tools capable of digitally removing clothing from photographs to generate deepfake nude images.

So-called "nudification" apps had previously been widely and easily accessible for download.

The ban formed part of a wider package of measures brought in under Sir Keir Starmer's Government, seen as an effort to reaffirm its "commitment to women".

Female MPs within the Parliamentary Labour Party had reportedly pushed for stronger action on violence against women and girls.

The technology has also been exploited by predators to create "nudified" images of children, often using family photos taken from social media.

Earlier this year, X announced it would prevent users from using its Grok AI tool to generate images depicting real people in a state of undress in countries where doing so is illegal.