A face, a few clicks, an AI: that's all it takes today to digitally strip a woman, to attribute pornography to her, or to appear in her name. Collien Monica Fernandes has been experiencing what this means for years. Over the years, fake profiles of her appear online. Contacts are made with men in her name, pornographic images and videos are sent. In spring 2026, Fernandes publicly states that her then-husband Christian Ulmen is responsible for this. The case has sparked a broad debate about digital sexualized violence. In an interview with Barbara Blaha, the discussion revolves around a form of violence that is technically new but follows an ancient pattern: women are to be shamed, controlled, and intimidated. Digital tools make this easier, cheaper, and infinitely scalable. What does it mean when someone takes over an identity and makes their own body into material? Why are victims so poorly protected legally? What must platforms and politics do?
A face, a few clicks, an AI: today, that's all it takes to digitally strip a woman, to attribute pornography to her, or to appear in her name. Collien Monica Fernandes has experienced what this means for years. Over time, fake profiles of her appear online. Contacts with men are made in her name, pornographic images and videos are sent. In spring 2026, Fernandes publicly states that her then-husband Christian Ulmen is responsible for this. The case has sparked a broad debate about digital sexualized violence.
In an interview with Barbara Blaha, it is about a form of violence that is technically new but follows an ancient pattern: women are to be shamed, controlled, and intimidated. Digital tools make this easier, cheaper, and infinitely scalable. What does it mean when someone takes over an identity and makes their own body into material? Why are victims so poorly protected legally? What must platforms and politics do?
The first re:publica Vienna brought the most important European festival for digital society, politics, technology, and culture to Austria for the first time. From October 2 to 3, 2026, the Kulturhaus Brotfabrik became a place for debates and keynotes with international speakers. The teams from OKTO and Moment Magazin recorded the events and have been presenting the videos since October 5 in the slots at 6:00 PM and 11:10 PM.
