Teenagers could download dozens of AI apps capable of creating nonconsensual sexualized images despite parental controls on Apple and Google devices, an investigation using accounts registered to 13-year-olds found. Four test accounts—two on each platform—downloaded 135 apps that could digitally remove clothing or place faces on nude bodies. The researchers used AI-generated images of women rather than photographs of real people.
The investigation found that age ratings were often supplied by developers and did not reliably reflect an app’s functions.
Parental controls did not prevent access when the apps were classified as suitable for younger users. An Apple account registered to a 13-year-old was also allowed to bypass an adult-content warning by confirming that the user was at least 17.
The findings mirror a case in Pennsylvania that began in December 2025, when Morgan Dorfman learned that a student had used the Movely app to make sexual videos from images of her daughter and five other girls. Dorfman said the app offered suggestive templates in its free version and more explicit scenarios through paid features. After the app was removed from the store, it remained functional on her phone and continued charging her subscription.
The incident also exposed the difficulty of removing material after it has been created. Dorfman said the school initially told families there was no evidence the student had done anything inappropriate, although Radnor police later charged him with harassment. She said the family could not know who had copies of the videos after the student deleted the app.
Apple removed 25 apps during the investigation and Google removed six, but previously downloaded versions remained usable. Google said it suspended violating apps and restricted related search terms. Apple said it had acted against the apps identified and strengthened its rules to require developers to prevent and remove nonconsensual intimate imagery, while arguing that some apps were legitimate editing tools whose harmful functions were added after review.
The app-store findings follow earlier evidence that these services can reach minors through ordinary searches and misleading age classifications. A separate investigation identified 46 unique apps in Apple’s store and 49 in Google Play; testing found that about 40% could produce nude or scantily clad images, while analytics data attributed 483 million downloads and more than $122 million in lifetime revenue to the apps examined.