Case anthropic-gtg-15001-dating-appsDeepfake fraudWorldwide
GTG-15001: China studio ran 20+ dating apps with 4,700 Claude personas, 25,000 victims
A China-based app studio mixed about three AI personas per human gig worker across 20+ dating apps; in two weeks of April 2026 Claude sent about 2.36 million messages to 25,000+ users paying in coins to keep chatting.
HighAttack using AIStatus: ContainedVerified case file
Open in the interactive mapCite this case
- Reported
- Sep 10, 2026
- Location
- Worldwide
- Target
- Users of DORA, DONI, ROMI, LUMA and other dating apps
- Severity
- High
- Triggered by
- GTG-15001 (China-based app studio)
- Actor type
- Criminal
- Reported loss
- None reported
- CVE
- None
What happened
A China-based app studio mixed about three AI personas per human gig worker across 20+ dating apps; in two weeks of April 2026 Claude sent about 2.36 million messages to 25,000+ users paying in coins to keep chatting.
Impact: At least 25,000 users deceived into paid relationships with bots; some users disclosed illness or distress to personas that stayed in character.
Who triggered it
Actor: GTG-15001 (China-based app studio)
Attribution: Anthropic Threat Intelligence; attributed to a China-based studio via domains heyhru.com, archat.us and sitin.ai and shared package names.
Motive: Revenue from paid messaging and in-app coin purchases
How it happened
Attack vector: AI personas instructed never to disclose automation, avatar generation, hidden payment flows and review-only app interfaces to evade app-store checks
Root cause: Undisclosed AI personas monetised through metered chat; app-store review evaded by showing a clean build
Timeline
- Two-week window in which 4,700+ personas exchange about 2.36 million messages with 25,000+ users
- Anthropic bans accounts and organisations and notifies Apple, Google and other AI labs
Response
Accounts and organisations banned; findings shared with app stores and other AI companies whose tools were used.
Current status: Contained
Sources (open in a new tab)
- Anthropic September 2026 threat report anthropic.com
- Techlicious coverage techlicious.com
- Sahara Reporters coverage saharareporters.com
Cite this case
GTG-15001: China studio ran 20+ dating apps with 4,700 Claude personas, 25,000 victims. AI Threat Watch, case anthropic-gtg-15001-dating-apps, Sep 10, 2026. https://aithreat.io/cases/anthropic-gtg-15001-dating-apps/
Permanent link: https://aithreat.io/cases/anthropic-gtg-15001-dating-apps/