LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The attorneys general of Nebraska and Oklahoma are expressing concerns that Google is profiting from ads tied to online videos that promote illegal activity.
Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning sent a letter to Google on Tuesday about ads that appear on YouTube, the internet giant's video subsidiary.
Bruning and Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt took issue with videos that reportedly promote the sale of prescription drugs without prescriptions and counterfeit merchandise. They say other videos offer instructions to create fake driver's licenses and passports, coupled with advertisements for immigration lawyers.
Ad revenue is split between the video's producer and Google. Bruning criticized Google for a "lackadaisical attitude toward Internet safety and consumer protection."
A Google spokeswoman says YouTube's guidelines prohibit content that promotes dangerous or illegal behavior.