A new report from the Tech Transparency Project said Apple’s App Store and Google Play still hosted 38 apps designed for AI nudification or forced clothing removal, with an estimated 483 million downloads and roughly $122 million in combined revenue. The findings also pointed to a deeper problem: platform search ads and recommendation systems were helping users discover the apps.
Search terms surfaced nudify tools on both stores
Researchers said they found 18 apps in Apple’s App Store and 20 apps in Google Play. Typing terms such as “nudify” or “undress” into store search bars surfaced tools that could alter photos of celebrities or private individuals into nude or semi-nude images. Some apps marketed themselves with explicit sexual messaging. Others presented themselves as general image editors, while still being easy to use for non-consensual sexualized image generation. Several also offered paid subscriptions.
Platform ads and autocomplete drew sharper scrutiny
The report’s most contentious finding was that Apple’s and Google’s own systems were not just passively listing the apps. Search-result pages displayed ads for them, and autocomplete suggestions pushed users toward additional app names tied to the same category. Katie Paul, director of the Tech Transparency Project, said the issue was not limited to weak moderation or the fact that these companies continued to profit from the apps. In her view, the platforms’ own systems were actively steering users toward them.
Both companies already have written rules that appear to prohibit this type of content. Apple’s App Review Guidelines ban overtly pornographic material. Google Play policy also bans apps that demean or objectify people, including those claiming to undress someone or see through clothing, even if framed as jokes or entertainment. The gap, according to the report, sits in enforcement.
Apple removed 15 apps; Google said the review continues
After questions from Bloomberg, Apple said it had removed 15 apps identified in the report, including “PicsVid AI Hot Video Generator,” which offered sexually suggestive templates. Apple also said it contacted developers behind 6 apps and required them to address the issues within a set period or face removal. The company added that it had already rejected multiple submissions and removed other apps on its own.
Google said many of the apps named in the report had already been suspended for policy violations. Its response said reports of policy breaches are investigated and appropriate action is taken, and that the current review remains underway. One app highlighted by researchers, “Video Face Swap AI: DeepFace,” was listed in Google Play with an “E” age rating and had logged more than 1 million downloads. The report said the app included a feature that let users place another person’s face onto sexually suggestive dance videos. Developer Okapi Software said it had opened an investigation, removed some user-uploaded content, and denied that the app offered nudify functionality.
Researchers said enforcement remains uneven and opaque
Anne Helmond, a professor at Utrecht University and research director at the App Studies Initiative, said the platforms’ enforcement structure has clear weaknesses. If an app is framed as a general image-generation tool, it can still pass review even when misuse is obvious. She also said visibility inside app stores is heavily shaped by ranking and search systems, which can reward controversy with more exposure. Her conclusion was blunt: enforcement by both platforms is uneven and opaque.