A new report from the DV Fraud Lab says AI is driving the rise in the number of fraudulent mobile apps, threatening advertisers and exposing cracks in Apple’s and Google’s gatekeeping systems.
The analysis shows a steep rise in apps built to hijack devices or pump fake ad impressions, many powered or generated with artificial intelligence.
DV says the surge is hitting both iOS and Android ecosystems, but the impact is most severe on Google’s platform. The cybersecurity research firm finds that fraudulent Android apps are now appearing at nearly six times the five-year average, while fraudulent iOS apps are three times higher than the five-year average.
DV says the trend highlights how AI is being deployed to create convincing fake apps that slip past app store reviews and drain advertiser budgets.
“One of the key drivers behind this surge appears to be the use of AI. Fraud schemes are leveraging AI not just to generate fake traffic, but also to build more convincing and realistic-looking apps – making it harder for marketplace reviewers to identify and reject them at scale. These apps can also simulate legitimate user behavior, making the apps difficult to identify using traditional fraud-detection methods.”
Yuval Rubin, Fraud Detection Group lead at DV, says fraudsters are now using a combination of sophisticated tactics to avoid rejection.
“There’s a noticeable increase in apps slipping through major marketplace review processes that were previously unlikely to be approved.”
DV cites one fraudulent app that generated more than 200,000 daily impressions, causing significant monetary damage to unprotected advertisers. DV also uncovered the use of AI-generated reviews, templated developer websites, and even fake certificates to give scam apps a facade of legitimacy.
“No buying path is immune, no channel is a safe haven, and trust in the supply chain must continuously be audited and verified rather than assumed.”
According to DV, Apple itself rejected 1.93 million app submissions in 2025, a nearly 10% rise from the 1.76 million reported in 2024.
“In many cases, they are powered by or generated using AI, with bad actors creating shell operations to hijack Android/iPhone/iPad devices and/or falsify millions of fake impressions.”
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