Google's proactive measures to safeguard the integrity of the Indian elections in 2024 led to significant actions against millions of ad accounts. The company's efforts involved the removal of a massive number of ads and the suspension of numerous advertiser accounts in India due to policy violations. This decisive action reflects Google's commitment to maintaining a safe and transparent online advertising ecosystem during a critical period for democracy.

In 2024, Google removed 247.4 million ads and suspended 2.9 million advertiser accounts in India for policy violations. Globally, the company blocked or removed 5.1 billion ads. Google's actions were outlined in its annual Ads Safety Report, which details the company's efforts to protect users, advertisers, and publishers from malicious and misleading advertisements. A significant portion of these actions coincided with the Indian general elections, where online advertising played a crucial role in influencing the electorate. Google verified over 5,000 election-related ads and removed more than 7.3 million ads that did not meet verification standards during the election period.

Google's advertising policies require strict identity verification for election advertisers, including a pre-certificate from the Election Commission of India (ECI) for each ad. These policies prohibit demonstrably false claims that could undermine trust or participation in elections. Google was also the first major company to require clear labeling of AI-generated content in political ads. This was in response to the increasing use of AI in creating deceptive content, such as deepfakes, which could potentially mislead voters. Google assembled a specialist team of over 100 experts and updated its policies to combat AI-generated scam ads, leading to the suspension of over 700,000 advertiser accounts linked to such scams and a 90% drop in reports of these ads.

The most common policy violations leading to enforcement action included ads related to financial services, trademark misuse, abuse of the ad network, personalized advertising practices, and gambling-related content. Google has also taken action against websites hosting policy-violating ads, taking action on 1.3 billion web pages.

Google's efforts to combat malicious ads rely heavily on artificial intelligence (AI), particularly large language models (LLMs). These AI systems enable faster and more accurate threat detection and enhance policy enforcement. Google's AI systems handle 97% of policy enforcement across publisher pages and played a key role in reducing public figure impersonation scams.

Google's actions during the Indian elections demonstrate the company's commitment to promoting transparency and preventing the spread of misinformation. By enforcing strict advertising policies, verifying election advertisers, and utilizing advanced AI technologies, Google aims to ensure a safer and more trustworthy online environment for users.