San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu sent cease-and-desist letters to Apple and Google on July 16, demanding the companies remove 13 apps that generate nonconsensual nude images of real people. The letters cover eight App Store apps and five on Google Play.

Chiu’s office accused both companies of aiding and abetting the sale of illegal deepfake pornography by hosting the apps, processing their in-app purchases, and taking a share of the revenue.

The letters state the companies have been on notice for nearly a year, direct them to sever ties with the developers, and give them 28 days to respond or face civil penalties under California law.

“Apple and Google are profiting off apps that exploit women and girls by generating nonconsensual intimate deepfakes,” Chiu said in a statement, adding the companies have a responsibility to be “proactive and vigilant to prevent sexual abuse.”

The flagged apps advertise themselves as face-swapping tools, including one with more than 1 million downloads, according to Chiu’s office.

The Tech Transparency Project, a watchdog group that reported the apps to both companies in January and April, has identified roughly 100 apps across the two stores with a combined 480 million downloads and more than $120 million in revenue.

Apple stated it removed three of the flagged apps, is terminating those developers’ accounts, and has contacted four other developers over policy violations. Google stated all five Play Store apps have been suspended, adding it has removed hundreds of nudification apps and restricted related search terms.

The letters extend a widening enforcement push against AI-generated imagery of real people. The U.S. Department of Justice seized two deepfake pornography domains in June, the first domain seizures targeting violations of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, and Chiu’s 2024 lawsuit against 16 nudify websites has driven 11 of them offline.