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The city of San Francisco has ordered Apple and Google to remove dozens of \u201cnudify\u201d apps \u2014 \u2014 software programs that can digitally alter pictures to unclothe the people in them \u2014 from their app stores.<\/p>\n
California law criminalizes any activity<\/a> that \u201cknowingly facilitates\u201d or \u201crecklessly aids or abets\u201d the creation of non-consensual deepfake pornography. In 2025, California also passed a law<\/a> that allows victims to pursue civil actions against third-party facilitators of such material. The city says that, despite these well-known regulations, both tech companies have continued to host and make money from such programs.<\/p>\n \u201cApple and Google are profiting off apps that exploit women and girls by generating nonconsensual intimate deepfakes,\u201d San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said in an emailed statement to TechCrunch. \u201cWhile the companies cut ties with some problematic apps, Apple and Google have a responsibility to be proactive and vigilant to prevent sexual abuse.\u201d<\/p>\n Letters sent to Google and Apple by Chiu\u2019s office, which were viewed by TechCrunch, note that the companies have \u201cbeen on notice\u201d for their role in \u201cprocessing payments for illegal purchases for almost a year\u201d but have, nevertheless, continued to do so. <\/p>\n According to the letters, both companies have been repeatedly warned that they are hosting these apps. In January and again in April, the Tech Transparency Project issued reports and sent letters to both companies noting that there were \u201cdozens of apps\u201d within their app stores that \u201csold deepfake NCII [non-consensual intimate images] in exchange for payments\u201d from processed by the firms.<\/p>\n TTP\u2019s report<\/a> from April said that Google and Apple had intentionally \u201csteered\u201d users towards such apps and called both companies \u201ckey participants in the spread of AI tools that can turn real people into sexualized images.\u201d<\/p>\n Additionally, Chiu told Wired<\/a> that both companies had likely made \u201cmillions of dollars in fees\u201d from apps that offered such services.<\/p>\n The letters from Chiu\u2019s office warn that Apple and Google could face civil penalties for violating the law and request that they contact the city within 28 days.<\/p>\n When reached for comment by TechCrunch, an Apple spokesperson said that nudify apps were forbidden from appearing in its App Store, further noting: \u201cWe have removed three of the apps in question and are in the process of terminating their developer accounts from our program. We are in contact with four others that need to address policy violations or risk being removed as well.\u201d <\/p>\n A Google spokesperson claimed that all five Play apps referenced in Chiu\u2019s letter had been suspended from Google Play. \u201cWhen violations are reported to us, we investigate and take swift action, which in the case of these apps has included suspending hundreds of violating apps and restricting related search terms like \u2018nudify\u2019 on our store,\u201d the spokesperson added. <\/p>\n Deepfake pornography has largely been a problem<\/a> for female celebrities, although nudify apps make it possible for anyone with a publicly available photo to be targeted.<\/p>\n Update July 17: This article was updated to include statements from Google and Apple. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission<\/a>. This doesn\u2019t affect our editorial independence.<\/em><\/p>\n