Lorraine Schembri Orland, judge elected in respect of Malta, participated in a roundtable discussion on deepfake technologies and gender-based violence, organised by the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry on 14 July 2026. This was part of its Together We Empower-A Future without Violence programme.

The roundtable addressed the topic of the State’s duty (positive obligation) to protect, the challenges posed by misinformation, the gaps in current national legislation that do not properly address deepfakes, how easy creating deepfakes has become, and the effects on victims, such as shame and self-blame. It brought together key stakeholders from business, government, civil society, and technical fields to establish a structured, evidence-based platform for dialogue, to promote national legislation on deepfakes, and to encourage coordinated sectoral responses.

The invited guest speakers addressed both legal and social realities. In her speech, Judge Schembri Orland referred to a number of cases decided by the Court that provided case-law on the State’s positive obligation to protect. These included Opuz v. Turkey, Valiulienė v. Lithuania, Talpis v. Italy, and Volodina v. Russia.

The concluding address demonstrated how the sophistication and accessibility of generative AI now allowed almost anyone to create convincing fake images, audio, and video, and led to the conclusion that Malta must act fast on deepfakes and gender-based violence.