​Twitter's Porn Problem Worries Advertisers

Despite its recent move to removing extreme violent content, and cracking down on abuse on its network, porn is still prevalent on microblogging site - Twitter.

This problem has caused some brand-owners to halt their advertising campaigns after their promoted tweets turn up on pornographic profile pages.

According to Adweek, Nielsen’s promos showed up on Twitter profile pages called “Daily Dick Pictures” and “Homemade Porn.” A source told Adweek that ads are not supposed to appear on a profile page with X-rated content, and a bug was to blame.

The trade magazine says ads from other brands including Duane Reade, NBCUniversal, and Gatorade also showed up in feeds next to pornographic images and videos. The problem appears to be tied to a new ad format "Suggested by Twitter," which only first rolled out in March.

Twitter said it usually blocks advertisers content from x-rated sites, but a bug had allowed Nielsen tweets to slip through.


The company however said its product team is "working to fix the issue".

Ads on Twitter are targeted based on a user's interests, location, accounts followed, and so on — not the specific content they are viewing at any one time.