Google has blocked all search ads on Google+ and Gmail in the European Union, China and the United States, the company has announced.
The news comes just days after a group of Google+ users reported seeing a strange error message appearing in their Google searches on Tuesday, with the text “This search was blocked due to inappropriate content.”
Google’s search results now display the following message, with a link to the Google+ page.
The search results appear to redirect users to a page that lists the content blocked in each country, including information about what the company deems to be “illegal content.”
In Europe, Google blocked Google+ accounts belonging to the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Belgium, Spain, and Portugal.
Google has since removed the blocking in Belgium.
In China, Google has not removed the blocked accounts, nor has it removed the content from its Google+ pages.
The Google+ account in Taiwan appears to still be blocked.
Google has not yet responded to Ars’ request for comment.
Google is currently working on updating its Chrome browser to block search results that include “offensive content” and “inappropriate content.”
Chrome will automatically block “offensive” and other inappropriate content when you navigate to the page.
“Inappropriate content” refers to content that Google deems to have “a clear and explicit pro-Nazi, fascist, or other extremist message.”
In the case of Google’s blocking of searches in China, that message appears to be a link for a YouTube video titled “We Need to Build a Wall!”
The video shows a Nazi marching in Germany.
Google is also reportedly working on blocking YouTube in countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America, as well as in the United Arab Emirates.
Google+ blocked content in the US is now removed, and in the UK and Ireland, content is also blocked.
Ars will update this story if the company responds.
