Google has removed Russian state-funded media – including Russia Today and Sputnik – from its Google News search platform.

The search giant said it also blocking YouTube channels connected to Russian state media across Europe, and that this action builds on its indefinite pause of the monetisation of Russian state-funded media across its platforms, meaning media outlets such as RT are not allowed to monetise their content or advertise on its platforms.

Google said it has also significantly limited recommendations globally for several Russian state-funded media outlets across its platforms, and that in the past few days, YouTube has removed hundreds of channels and thousands of videos for violating its Community Guidelines, including a number of channels engaging in ‘coordinated deceptive practices’.

In addition, Google said it has observed the attackers behind the GhostWriter cyberthreat group targeting Ukrainian government and military officials.

Google said it blocked these attempts and had not seen any compromise of Google accounts because of this campaign.

“We are committed to complying with all sanctions requirements and we continue to monitor the latest guidance,” said a Google spokesperson. “As individuals, regions and institutions like banks are sanctioned, products like Google Pay may become unavailable in certain countries.”

They added: “Most of our services (like Search, Maps and YouTube) currently remain available in Russia, continuing to provide access to global information and perspectives.”

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