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SecurityQuiet 8d · day 9

Wired exposes 400+ apps hiding nonconsensual deepfake and CSAM tools behind mundane fronts

A Hong Kong-linked network disguised as pet-portrait and language apps secretly generates sexual abuse deepfakes, investigation finds.

newest coverage 8d agosummary written 8d ago35 pieces955 likes & upvotes19 comments MastodonNewswiresGoogle NewsBlueskyReddit

What to know

  • Wired identified over 400 connected apps and domains disguised as ordinary AI tools (pet portraits, language tutors, fitness coaches) secretly generating nonconsensual sexual deepfakes.
  • The network appears linked to Chinese-language developers and Hong Kong-registered KeLing Technology Limited, which erased public ties to the apps after being contacted.
  • The apps were promoted through tens of thousands of Meta ads, some of which Wired previously found contained AI-generated child sexual abuse material, despite Apple, Google, and Meta policies barring such content.
  • The operation has reportedly run for about a year, publishing dozens of apps per week, suggesting current app store and ad platform enforcement has failed to stop it.

“Each time the application is downloaded, there is a call to the server with some information, such as where the user is coming from, the language, some unique identifier, and then the server replies whether or not to show the explicit or the non-explicit version of it”

Researcher (unnamed, per Wired), Investigator cited in Wired report · Wired ↗ · Nov 1

Matt Burgess Wired investigative reporterPaul Bouchaud Lead researcher, AI ForensicsKeLing Technology Limited Hong Kong-registered entity linked to the app networkMeta Platform hosting the ads linking to the appsApple and Google App store operators hosting the apps

Wired exposes 400+ apps hiding nonconsensual deepfake and CSAM tools behind mundane fronts
wired.com

How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts

Peak 19 pieces in two hours at Nov 2, 4 AM; 35 pieces over 9 days (23 articles · 12 posts) Nov 2, 4 AM — 19 pieces · 16 articles · 3 posts — Google News 9, Newswires 6, Mastodon 3, +1 moreNov 2, 6 AM — 5 pieces · 3 articles · 2 posts — Mastodon 3, Newswires 1, Google News 1Nov 2, 8 AM — 3 pieces · 1 article · 2 posts — Bluesky 1, Google News 1, Mastodon 1Nov 2, 10 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Nov 2, 12 PM — quietNov 2, 2 PM — quietNov 2, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Newswires 1Nov 2, 6 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Nov 2, 8 PM — quietNov 2, 10 PM — quietNov 3, 12 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Reddit 1Nov 3, 2 AM — quietNov 3, 4 AM — quietNov 3, 6 AM — quietNov 3, 8 AM — quietNov 3, 10 AM — quietNov 3, 12 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Newswires 1Nov 3, 2 PM — quietNov 3, 4 PM — quietNov 3, 6 PM — quietNov 3, 8 PM — quietNov 3, 10 PM — quietNov 4, 12 AM — quietNov 4, 2 AM — quietNov 4, 4 AM — quietNov 4, 6 AM — quietNov 4, 8 AM — quietNov 4, 10 AM — quietNov 4, 12 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Newswires 1Nov 4, 2 PM — quietNov 4, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Nov 4, 6 PM — quietNov 4, 8 PM — quietNov 4, 10 PM — quietNov 5, 12 AM — quietNov 5, 2 AM — quietNov 5, 4 AM — quietNov 5, 6 AM — quietNov 5, 8 AM — quietNov 5, 10 AM — quietNov 5, 12 PM — quietNov 5, 2 PM — quietNov 5, 4 PM — quietNov 5, 6 PM — quietNov 5, 8 PM — quietNov 5, 10 PM — quietNov 6, 12 AM — quietNov 6, 2 AM — quietNov 6, 4 AM — quietNov 6, 6 AM — quietNov 6, 8 AM — quietNov 6, 10 AM — quietNov 6, 12 PM — quietNov 6, 2 PM — quietNov 6, 4 PM — quietNov 6, 6 PM — quietNov 6, 8 PM — quietNov 6, 10 PM — quietNov 7, 12 AM — quietNov 7, 2 AM — quietNov 7, 4 AM — quietNov 7, 6 AM — quietNov 7, 8 AM — quietNov 7, 10 AM — quietNov 7, 12 PM — quietNov 7, 2 PM — quietNov 7, 4 PM — quietNov 7, 6 PM — quietNov 7, 8 PM — quietNov 7, 10 PM — quietNov 8, 12 AM — quietNov 8, 2 AM — quietNov 8, 4 AM — quietNov 8, 6 AM — quietNov 8, 8 AM — quietNov 8, 10 AM — quietNov 8, 12 PM — quietNov 8, 2 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Bluesky 1Nov 8, 4 PM — quietNov 8, 6 PM — quietNov 8, 8 PM — quietNov 8, 10 PM — quietNov 9, 12 AM — quietNov 9, 2 AM — quietNov 9, 4 AM — quietNov 9, 6 AM — quietNov 9, 8 AM — quietNov 9, 10 AM — quietNov 9, 12 PM — quietNov 9, 2 PM — quietNov 9, 4 PM — quietNov 9, 6 PM — quietNov 9, 8 PM — quietNov 9, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 2 AM — quietYesterday, 4 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 8 AM — quietYesterday, 10 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 2 PM — quietYesterday, 4 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 8 PM — quietYesterday, 10 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 2 AM — quietToday, 4 AM — quiet 1–2
Nov 3Nov 4Nov 5Nov 6Nov 7Nov 8Nov 9now · 5:43 AM ET
  1. 2

    Coverage of the investigation spreads via aggregators

    Techmeme and Mastodon accounts republish and summarize the Wired findings, framing it as a network bypassing app store reviews to generate nonconsensual deepfakes and CSAM.

    1. 1 outlet Investigation: a network of 400+ domains and apps linked to Chinese-language developers bypasses app store reviews to generate nonconsensual deepfakes and CSAM

      first by Wired, 8d ago

    • wired.com

      A network of around 400 apps that look like regular AI tools have secret features allowing the generation of violent and sexually explicit AI images and videos using photos users upload, a WIRED investigation found.

      wired.comBluesky8d ago424▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 4 posts in this stretch
    • mattburgess1.bsky.social

      NEW: I recently reported how Meta ran hundreds of ads containing AI-generated child sexual abuse. Links in those ads and other nudify ads, led us to a network of more than 400 apps disguising themselves as everyday AI When opened they would transform into deepfake abuse apps

      mattburgess1.bsky.socialBluesky8d ago272▲view on Bluesky ↗
    • wired.com

      WIRED uncovered some 400 apps and websites linked to Chinese-language developers that look like regular AI tools but had secret features that let users create violent AI-generated images and video.

      wired.comBluesky2d ago216▲view on Bluesky ↗
    all of them →
  2. 1

    KeLing Technology scrubs ties after Wired contacts it

    Email addresses linked to the Hong Kong-registered entity KeLing Technology Limited and related apps did not respond to Wired's requests for comment, but after being contacted the operators appeared to erase public connections between the company and the deepfake tools.

    “This is an organized, commercially run operation: One operator behind hundreds of disposable apps and domains, cloaked to pass App Store review and pushed through tens of thousands of Meta ads under fake payer names.”
    — Paul Bouchaud, Lead researcher, AI Forensics · source
  3. background

    Wired uncovers 400+ app network hiding abusive deepfake tools — Researchers traced ad links to a network of over 400 connected domains and apps posing as pet-portrait, language-learning, or fitness apps that, under certain conditions, load a hidden interface generating explicit nonconsensual images and videos such as "bedroom rape" and "threatening knife" scenes using uploaded photos.

  4. background

    Wired reports CSAM deepfake ads spreading on Meta platforms — In earlier reporting, Wired found hundreds of Facebook and Instagram video ads containing AI-generated child sexual abuse material, including images of real children and a member of a European royal family, reaching tens of thousands of people and prompting regulator investigations.

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. 4 outlets Over 400 AI Apps Slip Past Apple and Google Vetting, Concealing Deepfake Abuse Tools

    first by BigGo Finance, 8d ago · also Daily Caller, Breitbart, TechRepublic

    3 more headlines
  2. 2 outlets AI apps with hidden sexual and violent deepfake features made it into the App Store

    first by Mastodon, 8d ago · also 9to5Mac

  3. 2 outlets How did 400 AI apps with hidden deepfake tools bypass app store checks? | Apps were developed by a single Chinese org | Inshorts

    first by Inshorts, 9d ago · also Firstpost

    2 more headlines
  4. 2 outlets Hundreds of AI Apps Secretly Generate Sexually Abusive Deepfakes, Evading App Store Reviews

    first by OECD AI Policy Observatory, 9d ago · also WIRED

    1 more headline

and 4 smaller pieces

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