Much has been said and written about Russia-linked ads being used to spread divisive views in the United States via Facebook prior to the general election last year. It appears that Facebook may not have been the only platform used for this. According to a new report, Google has found evidence of Russia-linked ads that were spread using its services like YouTube, Google Search, and Gmail.
The Washington Post reports that Google has discovered evidence that a campaign by the Russian government spread propaganda through advertising on its platforms. A recent report revealed that Twitter had uncovered similar ads as well.
The scribe mentions that Google’s investigation into the matter is in early stages for now. It’s said to be in the process of separating ads from legitimate Russian sources from the ones used to spread propaganda.
“We have a set of strict ads policies including limits on political ad targeting and prohibitions on targeting based on race and religion,” said a spokesperson for Google, adding that the company is taking a “deeper look” to investigate attempts to abuse its systems.
It’s working with researchers and other companies. Google promises to provide assistance to ongoing inquiries in this matter.
It will be interesting to see what Google comes up with after it conducts a thorough investigation.
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