WIRED Uncovers 400-Plus Deepfake Apps After 350,000 Downloads on Google Play

1 articles · Updated · WIRED · Nov 2

More than 400 connected apps and domains were found disguising themselves as pet-photo, language, or fitness tools while secretly generating explicit deepfake images and videos from uploaded photos.
Researchers said the apps used a bait-and-switch system: after download, servers decided whether to show a benign interface or a hidden web layer with sexual templates such as “bedroom rape” and “threatening knife.”
Nearly 500 linked domains and 27 live Play Store apps were traced through shared code, ad trackers, and encryption keys; the network had registered as many as 30 nudify app-sites a week and one app, DiffAI, topped 100,000 downloads.
Apple removed 19 apps after WIRED’s inquiries, while Meta said it had acted against 11,600 ad accounts, 4,700 business pages, 5,200 users, 15,000 pages, and blocked 209 apps from advertising.
The operation appears tied to Chinese developers and Hong Kong-registered KeLing Technology Limited, which researchers linked through domains, emails, and admin pages; similar ads and apps were still appearing as reporting ended.