YouTube is Serving Porn Ads on Trending Videos

Apr. 11, 2018

YouTube has recently been in the news for all the wrong reasons and it’s problems don’t seem to be stopping anytime soon. Previously, the company made headlines when a number ofVEVO channels were hackedby a group called Kuroi’SH & Prosox. Following that, we discovered that thechannel search on the platform was brokenand was redirecting users to a different channel.(Image: Motherboard)

The video currently has around 300,000 views and the link in question, which pops up when the ad starts playing, redirects to a CamSoda-branded webcam model page. A number of people on Twitter have shown their concern regarding the explicit ad. When contacted regarding the ad, YouTube toldMotherboardthat:

“We have clear policies against ads featuring graphic adult content. When we become aware of an ad that violates our policies, we immediately remove it and take appropriate action, including, and up to, suspending the responsible account.”

The offending channel has since been removed from the platform, including the auto-playing ad videos. The company has also provided disgruntled users with a link to the AdWords troubleshooting page where they can provide feedback for ads displayed on the platform.