“This is the AI men actually use”: Meta ads pushed apps nudifying real teens
A report by Wired and the Tech Transparency Project (TTP) found that Meta ran ads promoting apps that produced sexualized images of minors, including a Facebook page called “Divine Productions” that claimed to represent the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Meta disabled that page only after TTP flagged the content, and the ads collectively reached thousands of people in multiple countries.
Why It Matters
The findings show potential gaps in Meta’s ad review that allowed child sexual abuse material (CSAM) or related ads to run and draw paid impressions, prompting inquiries from state attorneys general, a U.S. senator and international regulators. That regulatory scrutiny follows warnings from online-safety groups that AI tools make it easier to produce realistic sexual imagery of children, increasing the risk of harm.
Key Facts
- Platform: Meta (Facebook/Instagram) ads
- Problem identified by: TTP (Tech Transparency Project) and Wired report
- Example page: "Divine Productions" Facebook page that claimed to represent the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- Action taken: Meta disabled the Divine Productions page after TTP flagged it
- Reported reach (EU): more than 29,000 people in the EU (TTP report)
A joint finding by Wired and the organization identified as TTP shows Meta ran paid ads that promoted apps able to produce sexualized images of minors. One conspicuous case involved a Facebook page called "Divine Productions," which claimed to represent the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and ran an ad containing CSAM; Meta reportedly removed that page only after TTP alerted the company.
TTP’s analysis found the ads reached thousands of people across regions: more than 29,000 in the EU and roughly 6,800 in the UK, with about 80 percent of the ads served in the United States and smaller numbers in Australia. Meta told Wired it does not tolerate nudify apps or child exploitation, but acknowledged some offending ads may have evaded automated detection because clips were brief or blur-obscured. Meta also noted that the flagged ads averaged under 200 impressions and had a combined ad spend below $5,000, while TTP suggested the company’s counts could understate the true extent and revenue.
The revelations have drawn attention from lawmakers and regulators. Attorneys general in Michigan and Florida said they were investigating the CSAM-related ads, and Senator Mark Warner (D.-Va.) sent a letter demanding Meta stop the illegal and inappropriate advertising after Wired’s August report. Meta has indicated it will respond to Warner’s letter, and Australia’s eSafety regulator — which recently moved to ban under-16s from social media — has requested information from Meta at a senior level.
Online-safety groups have warned about the broader risks posed by AI image tools. Emma Hardy, director of communications at the Internet Watch Foundation, told Wired that such apps lower the barrier to creating realistic criminal imagery of child sexual abuse and argued platforms must prevent those apps from being advertised and spreading on their networks.
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Original source: Ars Technica AI