# Apple tightens App Store rules on nonconsensual intimate images

_Published Friday, October 16, 2026 at 8:06 PM EDT · AI, Products · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

![A mannequin’s face covered in pixels. — Primary](https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/STK419_DEEPFAKE_3_CVIRGINIA_B.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0%2C10.732984293194%2C100%2C78.534031413613&w=1200)

Apple updated its App Store rules Friday to explicitly require developers to prevent and remove nonconsensual sexual images. Developers that fail to implement adequate safeguards or remedy violations after notice may lose App Store access.

The changes also clarify that apps cannot add features such as AI nudification after approval to evade review. Apps facilitating human trafficking or child exploitation face removal from the App Store and exclusion from alternative distribution. Apple previously kept X and Grok in the store despite criticism over sexualized deepfakes.

## Sources

- [The Verge](https://www.theverge.com/tech/1013314/apple-app-store-nudify-ai-apps-harassment)

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Canonical: https://techandbusiness.org/newswire/hzT5uINmHziO-DK9bsrAT1
Published: 2026-10-17T00:06:17.284Z
Story chronology: 2026-10-16T22:51:22.000Z
Retrieved: 2026-10-17T03:06:57.701Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)