Baidu criticized for fraudulent keyword advertising

China's Baidu is facing criticism after a state-run television network ran reports alleging that the company fails to stop scammers from abusing its keyword advertising platform to promote fraudulent websites.

The news reports, however, may just be the latest sign Chinese authorities want to better regulate the search company given its near monopoly over the country's market, according to analysts. The reports, which ran on China Central Television (CCTV) on Monday, showed an undercover journalist applying for and succeeding to advertise two fake companies on Baidu's search results. At no point, did Baidu take measures to verify if the companies actually existed, according to the report. Cases were also shown of how Baidu's keyword advertising can allegedly allow scammers to drive users to their fake sites.