Meta Platforms Inc.’s Facebook and Instagram have served thousands of ads for AI “nudify” apps in breach of the company’s policies, delivered by one of its few advertising partners in China, according to the nonprofit Tech Transparency Project.
Beijing-based GatherOne Inc., which connects Chinese firms seeking to advertise on Meta’s social media services with the US company, has been responsible in recent months for some 7,600 ads for mobile apps that can transpose women’s faces onto naked bodies and create sexualised videos, the agency said in a new report. It singled out an app, created in China, that allows for the sharing of material some users have flagged as child pornography.
Meta’s rules prohibit sexually suggestive ads or those for apps that purport to strip the persons depicted. But TTP’s work, which aims to hold Big Tech companies to account, shows repeated failures from the likes of Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc. to curb such apps. Regulators, victims and their families around the world have been calling on tech firms to do more to combat so-called deepfake porn services.
“Meta appears to be giving a free pass to one of its top Chinese advertising partners when it comes to nudify ads,” said Katie Paul, TTP’s director.
While Instagram and Facebook aren’t available in China, they’re attractive promotional tools for China-based businesses looking for a global audience. Paul said her agency’s findings contradict Meta’s statements about prohibiting ads for deepfake-nude apps and suggest the company prioritises ad revenue over concern for its users.
“We do not allow non-consensual intimate imagery or nudify apps on our platform and we take aggressive steps to combat them,” said Cindy Southworth, Meta’s Head of Women’s Safety Policy.
“All advertisers have to comply with our advertising standards, and failure to comply with our policies and standards can lead to the cancellation of ads placed, financial penalties and termination of ad accounts,” a Meta spokesperson said.
GatherOne said it complies with Meta’s advertising policies and all applicable international legal frameworks. The company maintains a zero-tolerance policy against deceptive practices, adult content, non-consensual explicit AI-generated material, child exploitation and fraud, it said. Its website says it works with clients in gaming, e-commerce, entertainment and finance, helping them place ads across the networks of Meta, Alphabet’s Google, ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok and Elon Musk’s X.
GatherOne is suspending the creation of new advertising accounts for services related to AI nudifying and face-swap services, it said in response to queries from Bloomberg News. It added that it is undertaking a comprehensive compliance upgrade to address the technical evolution of synthetic media.
TTP is a research arm of the Washington, DC-based nonpartisan corporate and government watchdog Campaign for Accountability.