A Chinese female livestreamer reportedly lost around 1.4 lakh (140,000) followers in a short time after her beauty filter malfunctioned during a live broadcast.
The incident, which went viral, shows the filter briefly switching off mid-stream, revealing her natural face, described as having mature skin texture, a warmer complexion, and no heavy digital enhancements like smoothed skin, enlarged eyes, or slimmed features common in Chinese beauty filters. The glitch lasted only seconds before the filter snapped back on, showing the heavily edited “ideal” version.
Clips spread rapidly across Instagram, X (Twitter), YouTube, and Facebook, with viral posts claiming the follower drop happened almost instantly as viewers unfollowed her. Many accused her of misleading audiences with unrealistic standards, while others defended her, noting she looked “more genuine” or “beautiful without filters.” Comments ranged from “This is why authenticity matters” to humorous takes like “Filters should be criminalized” or “She looks nicer real!”
The story highlights the intense pressure in China’s massive livestreaming industry, where beauty filters are standard tools for engagement and sales. Influencers often rely on them to meet high expectations for perfection, but glitches expose the gap between filtered and real appearances, risking credibility and audience loyalty.
The episode reignites global conversations about digital deception, body image pressures, and the ethics of heavy editing on social media.
This case serves as a reminder: in the pursuit of online perfection, authenticity can be a double-edged sword.
