Google appears to be facing trouble once again with its new YouTube Kids service as consumer advocacy groups filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission after discovering that it contains "objectionable" content, the Wall Street Journal reports .
The complaint, filed Tuesday by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood and the Center for Digital Democracy, says their groups discovered videos that would be “extremely disturbing and potentially harmful to young children who view them.”
The group claims to have discovered videos with explicit sexual language, jokes about pedophilia and drug use, adult discussions, and discussions about violence, pornography, and suicide.
An FTC spokesperson said the agency has received the complaints and is investigating them.
YouTube Kids launched in February with apps for Android and iOS in the US, and claims to offer specially curated videos that are appropriate for children.
The FTC received its first complaints about YouTube Kids last month, when various parent groups found ads aimed at children appearing.
A Google told the WSJ that users can flag videos they consider inappropriate, and that YouTube will review them one by one, removing them if necessary.
He also added that parents can disable the search function to ensure children do not stumble upon inappropriate content.
However, apart from the statement from the company representative, we expect to see more drastic security measures, as it is unacceptable for a service specifically for children to display such content.
Source: iguru
