Google Ads Were Viewed on Questionable Websites, Additional Vulnerable Websites, and Claims Report
According to a recent study by IANS, Google’s ad exchange has been running ads on hundreds of questionable websites that are labeled as approved by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
According to Adalytics, a digital marketing monitoring company, Google has been found to have put adverts on websites located in the sanctioned countries of Iran and Russia. In addition, the tech giant displayed search advertisements on YouTube and other external websites that are a member of the “Google Search Partner network” in addition to its platform.
The firm was found to be running adverts on websites containing unlawful and obscene information, according to the inquiry. For instance, it was found that a website sanctioned by Russia and Iran included ads for the US Treasury, FBI, and Secret Service.
“These included websites such as Breitbart.com, sites containing pirated content, hardcore pornographic sites, and hundreds of putative Iranian websites, which may potentially be under US Treasury Office of Foreign Assets (OFAC) sanctions,” according to the study.
Google’s vice president of global advertisements, Dan Taylor, promised that the business will abide with US sanctions as well as internal rules, but he also alluded to the untrustworthiness of Analytics’ previous findings. The investigation includes a number of screenshots that displayed advertisements close to inappropriate material that was against Google policy.
A number of firms, including Apple, Amazon, BMW, Goldman Sachs, KPMG, Walmart, and Meta, were impacted by mismatched advertising that appeared on children’s websites. According to the investigation, the infringing websites included politicians including US Senators Ted Cruz and Amy Klobuchar in addition to companies.
“AI committing crimes is a terrifying reality that we are facing for the first time in history. Examining Google’s advertising algorithms is necessary. Paul Tang, a member of the European Parliament (MEP), said that the EU Commission should demand accountability and openness about PMax and other ad bidding algorithms by using its auditing powers.
