US teens can access 'nudify' apps despite Apple and Google parental controls, study finds
Digital advocacy group Tech Transparency Project created four test accounts, two on Apple and two on Google, posing as 13-year-olds, and managed to download 135 apps capable of stripping clothes from photos or swapping faces onto nude bodies, even though such apps are explicitly banned under both companies' rules. Researchers found many of these apps were mislabeled as suitable for minors, including one face-swapping app advertised with an image of a woman performing a sexual act that was rated appropriate for ages four and up, letting teens download it even with active parental controls. The investigation began after an incident in Pennsylvania, where a student used an AI image-editing app to create pornographic material from a classmate's photo and those of five other girls, something the classmate's mother said she had no idea was even technically possible. Apple and Google say they mostly rely on app developers to self-declare the correct age rating, which the researchers' tests show is easy to game. For a business building or distributing AI apps through either major app store, the case shows that self-declared age ratings no longer count as proof of compliance, especially for products that generate images.
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