Actress Angel Aquino and content creator Queen Hera delivered emotional testimonies before the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality on Thursday, condemning the growing use of deepfakes to harass and exploit women and children.
Aquino revealed that her own image had been manipulated into a pornographic video, describing the experience as both “revolting and humiliating.” She said the discovery left her sick to her stomach, overwhelmed by disgust and anger. “Putting ourselves out there doesn’t give people consent to demean us, defame us, harass, or take us apart, or do whatever they want to do with us,” she stressed.
Queen Hera recounted a chilling incident where her daughter’s photo was maliciously edited and shared on the dark web. “As a mother, sobrang heartbreaking noon para sa akin,” she said, adding that she felt helpless when authorities admitted it was difficult to trace the perpetrators.
Aquino appealed for laws that will hold everyone involved accountable—from those who create and share deepfakes to platforms that allow them to spread. “These deepfake photos and videos hurt and violate real people. Punish the perpetrators… accountability must be total because the damage multiplies with every click, every share, every view,” she told senators.
Committee Chair Senator Risa Hontiveros echoed the urgency, noting that 95 percent of deepfakes are pornographic and 90 percent of victims are women and children.
Government agencies said they were ramping up defenses. The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) launched a real-time monitoring system for illegal sites and maintains a 24-hour takedown protocol. The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) leads a national task force on deepfakes, with a hotline (1326) for reporting online harms.
Lawmakers also pushed for stronger funding and monitoring of the dark web. Senator Sherwin Gatchalian suggested that protecting children online should be prioritized alongside major infrastructure budgets.
Representatives from TikTok and Google assured the committee of stricter content policies, while the Philippine National Police said it is acquiring AI detection tools to strengthen cyber patrols.
