Meta begins active fight against AI-based nudity apps

As AI-powered apps that expose others without their consent or create sexual or explicit images become increasingly popular online, Meta, which owns major platforms like Facebook and Instagram where these apps are heavily promoted, is taking a hard line, including legal action and partnering with other companies.

In the new announcement, the company outlines several key tools it will use to further combat such apps. First, Meta has filed a lawsuit against Joy Timeline HK Limited, a Hong Kong-based company behind a similar app called CrushAI, which is being actively promoted on Facebook and Instagram. The U.S. company is seeking a ban on advertising the app on its platforms.

The lawsuit arose as a result of unsuccessful previous attempts to block all advertisements associated with this application.

"This legal action underscores both the seriousness with which we take this abuse and our commitment to doing all we can to protect our community from it. We’ll continue to take the necessary steps – which could include legal action – against those who abuse our platforms like this," the company said in a statement.

For now, Meta notes that removing ads for such apps from a single platform won't have a major impact. That's why the company will share relevant information, including the offending sites, with other tech companies through the Tech Coalition's Lanter program so they can take action. Since the start of this collaboration, Meta has shared more than 3,800 links.

In addition, Meta will improve its own enforcement methods. The company has already developed new technology that can identify ads from similar apps, even if they don't contain nudity, and will use matching technology to more quickly find and remove duplicate ads.

"We welcome legislation that helps fight intimate image abuse across the internet, whether it’s real or AI-generated, and that complements our longstanding efforts to help prevent this content from spreading online through tools like StopNCII.org and NCMEC’s Take It Down. That’s why we championed and are working to implement the new U.S. TAKE IT DOWN Act, an important bipartisan step forward in fighting this kind of abuse across the internet and supporting those affected," Meta noted.