Google Removing Payday Loan Ads From Its Search Engine

Search giant Google announced Wednesday that it would cut payday loan providers from its advertising platforms, citing the potentially damaging effects to borrowers of short-term, high-interest cash loans. "Research has shown that these loans can result in unaffordable payment and high default rates for users so we will be updating our policies globally to reflect that," Google's head of global product policy, David Graf,f said in an announcement posted to the company's blog. The average payday loan borrower spends five months of the year in debt, paying more in fees than originally received, according to research compiled by the Pew Charitable Trusts. "Our hope is that fewer people will be exposed to misleading or harmful products," Graff said. The policy change, which follows a similar move by Facebook, won plaudits from advocacy groups concerned with the impact of payday loans on low-income borrowers.