A report from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) found that mainstream social media platforms, including YouTube and X, are driving significant referral traffic to nudify apps and websites. These platforms are enabling users to access tools that generate nonconsensual explicit imagery, despite strict policies against such content. The study highlights the contradiction between platform rules and the ease with which users can find and access these apps.
The ISD study analyzed the top 10 nudify apps and websites, finding that YouTube was the largest source of traffic, accounting for 1.82 million visits. X followed closely, with over 1.3 million visits. The report states that these platforms are not just passively hosting links to nudify sites but are actively facilitating their use. YouTube’s policies prohibit posting sexually explicit content and links to such sites, yet the study found that these rules are not consistently enforced.
According to the report, nudify apps are becoming a major issue on social media, with some tools allowing users to generate explicit content for as little as $1 per image. The apps have also become more accessible and profitable, with estimates suggesting they could generate up to $36 million annually. The report calls for coordinated efforts across platforms, policies, and education to address the spread of nonconsensual intimate images.
Source: wired
