The City of San Francisco, United States has ordered Apple and Google to remove dozens of “nudify” apps from their respective app stores, escalating scrutiny of tech companies over software that digitally alters images to make people appear unclothed.
The apps use artificial intelligence to manipulate photographs and create non-consensual sexualised images of individuals.
California law criminalises conduct that knowingly facilitates or recklessly aids or abets the creation of non-consensual deepfake pornography.
In 2025, the state also enacted legislation allowing victims to pursue civil claims against third parties that facilitate the creation or distribution of such material.
San Francisco officials said that, despite the existing regulations, Apple and Google had continued to host and profit from the apps.
“Apple and Google are profiting off apps that exploit women and girls by generating nonconsensual intimate deepfakes,” San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said in an emailed statement to TechCrunch. “While the companies cut ties with some problematic apps, Apple and Google have a responsibility to be proactive and vigilant to prevent sexual abuse.”
In April, the Tech Transparency Project issued reports and sent letters to both companies, alleging that “dozens of apps” on their app stores sold deepfake non-consensual intimate images through payment systems processed by the companies.
The report said Google and Apple had intentionally “steered” users toward such apps, describing both companies as “key participants in the spread of AI tools” capable of transforming images of real people into deepfakes.
Deepfake pornography has disproportionately targeted female celebrities, but nudify apps have made it possible for anyone with a publicly available photo to become a target.
