Call to vet YouTube ads like regular TV to stop scams

Call to vet YouTube ads like regular TV to stop scams

Google, which owns YouTube, has said it strives to support an "advertising ecosystem that's trustworthy and transparent for users".

Last week, Ofcom's annual report found that YouTube had overtaken ITV to become the UK's second most-watched media service behind the BBC.

The party wants more YouTube ads to be screened for potentially harmful content before they appear on the platform and for media regulator Ofcom to issue fines.

Ads on YouTube should be vetted like those on traditional TV to protect users from content such as scams, promotion of diet pills and fake celebrity endorsements, the Lib Dems have said.

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Currently, most ads broadcast on TV and Radio are pre-approved by industry bodies Clearcast and Radio Central before being aired, which is not the case for those that appear on YouTube.

The Liberal Democrats argue this means "online, irresponsible advertising can too often proliferate before any intervention to review it or take it down".

Max Wilkinson MP, a culture spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats said: "It's clearly not right that a platform now more watched than almost any traditional broadcaster is still operating under a 'lighter touch' advertising regime.

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