The order is blunt.
San Francisco’s City Attorney has demanded Apple and Google remove dozens of apps from their respective stores. These apps have a singular purpose. They use AI to strip clothing off people in photos without consent. It’s known as nudification. It is non-consensual. And right now the two tech giants are sitting on them.
David Chiu, the City Attorney for San Francisco, didn’t mince words in an emailed statement to TechCrunc. He accused both platforms of profiting off software that exploits women and girls.
“Apple and Google are profiting,” he said.
That is the core friction. The law is already clear in California. Activities that “knowingly facilitate” the creation of deepfake pornography are criminal. In 2025 the state tightened this further. Victims can now sue third-party facilitators in civil court. Chiu’s argument is simple. If the rules are written and public then Apple and Google knew they were hosting illegal tools. They kept taking their cut of the fees anyway.
The evidence suggests this wasn’t an oversight. The Tech Transparency Project (TTP) warned both companies twice. Once in January then again in April. Their reports listed dozens of apps selling these services. TTP argued that the stores weren’t just passive hosts. They said Google and Apple actually “steered” users toward these toxic apps. They called them key participants in spreading AI tools that turn real humans into sexualized imagery.
Why is the city moving now?
Money. According to Chiu speaking with Wired these platforms have likely collected millions in developer fees. The letters note they’ve been processing payments for almost a year. The demand is specific. Remove the apps. Fix the pipeline. Contact the city in 28 days or face civil penalties.
How are they responding?
Apple’s stance is standard corporate deflection with a side of action. A spokesperson told TechCrunch that nudify apps are forbidden. They said they removed three apps from the letter. Those developers are losing their accounts. Four others are under scrutiny.
Google sounded similarly tight-lipped but firm on action. All five apps cited by Chiu were suspended. They claimed they had already suspended hundreds of similar violations. They also restricted search terms like “nudify.”
“When violations are reported… we take swift action,” a Google rep said.
It’s a game of catch-up. Deepfake pornography has long targeted female celebrities. High-profile faces draw the worst attention. But nudify apps change the threat landscape. Now anyone with a public photo is vulnerable. Not just the famous. Everyone.
The technology moves faster than the moderation. Apple removes three. Hundreds of others exist. The cat is out of the bag and running across multiple platforms simultaneously.
Will this stop the supply chain? Probably not entirely. The infrastructure is distributed. The demand exists. But San Francisco is signaling something new. They aren’t asking politely anymore. They are threatening litigation against the platforms themselves. Not just the individual app creators. The gatekeepers are suddenly in the firing line.
There’s a reason Chiu chose to frame this as negligence rather than ignorance. It suggests intent. Or at least indifference. The question hanging in the air is whether fear of a fine changes more than the five apps currently in the crosshairs. Or if the profit margin simply makes it worth the legal hassle to keep letting others slip through the cracks.
For now the apps are down. Or suspended. But the code remains.
