Meta approved ads with AI-generated child abuse imagery, WIRED reports

Meta ↗ 0.14% reviewed, approved, and ran more than 50 paid advertisements containing AI-generated child sexual abuse imagery across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Threads over a nine-month period, according to an investigation by WIRED based on research from the Tech Transparency Project.wired+1

The ads, posted between November 2025 and early August 2026, were discovered by TTP researchers inside Meta's own public ad library — a transparency tool that catalogs advertisements displayed on the company's platforms. Several of the ads directed users to "nudify" or undressing applications, and some specifically targeted male audiences.engadget+1

No Effort to Hide

TTP Director Katie Paul told WIRED that the ads "made no effort to mask the images or hide what they were promoting," emphasizing that unlike user-generated content, these were advertisements that passed through Meta's review process.wired+1

"It's important to point out that this isn't content posted by third parties on Facebook or Instagram, these are ads that were reviewed, approved, and allowed to run by Meta, never encountering interference while the company collected the ad dollars," Paul said.engadget+1

Meta said in a statement that "the majority of these ads had minimal reach and many were disabled before WIRED shared them," adding that many predated newer AI detection tools the company recently deployed. The company said it removed over 36 million pieces of child sexual exploitation content last year and has taken legal action against nudify app developers.engadget

India Confronts Meta

The revelation landed amid heightened scrutiny from the Indian government, which summoned Meta's global executives for meetings on August 5 and 6. Joel Kaplan, Meta's chief global affairs officer, met with officials from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on August 5, where discussions covered the CSAM advertising issue alongside the brief restriction of a video by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 28.moneycontrol+2

IT Secretary S. Krishnan had confirmed the meetings would address "what measures have been taken" regarding CSAM, as well as AI-generated content and safeguards for verified accounts. India had previously issued a formal notice to Meta over child exploitation ads appearing on Instagram.economictimes+1

Regulatory Pressure Mounts

The European Parliament has also moved to address the underlying technology, with a new provision under the EU AI Act banning AI systems that generate child sexual abuse material set to take effect in December 2026. Meta said it would "continue to relentlessly fight this abuse," but the company faces questions about how explicit content passed its ad review systems unchallenged for months.europarl.europa+1