San Francisco DA Orders Apple, Google to Remove Nudeifying Apps
The order marks a rare direct legal action against tech platforms for hosting and monetizing apps that generate non-consensual intimate images, pushing the responsibility for proactive enforcement onto Apple and Google.
Reporting from 1 source: GIGAZINE.
San Francisco District Attorney David Chiu has ordered Apple and Google to remove nudeifying apps from their app stores, citing California laws that prohibit facilitating non-consensual deepfake pornography. Chiu's office warned that the companies have been processing payments for illegal purchases for nearly a year. Both companies have removed some apps but face potential civil penalties.
David Chiu, San Francisco's district attorney, sent a letter to Apple and Google on Friday warning that the companies have been processing payments for nudeifying apps for nearly a year. The apps use AI to generate non-consensual deepfake pornography of real people, which violates California law. Chiu's office has been warning the companies for months, and a watchdog group, the Tech Transparency Project, has reported that dozens of such apps remain on both stores. Apple said it removed three of the apps in question and contacted four others; Google said it removed all five mentioned in the letter and has suspended hundreds of similar apps. Both companies could face civil penalties.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.