Google’s delay in fighting online scammers is cause for shame

The tech giant's move to combat fraud and dodgy ads has taken too long. The online safety bill must change

We are committed to leading the necessary changes to help fight online scammers," trumpeted Google's UK managing director, Ronan Harris, this week, as if the tech giant were somehow a pioneer of a crackdown on online financial fraud and adverts offering bonds" with implausibly high rates of interest.

The reality is that Google's harder approach has taken an age to appear. It was 18 months ago that the frustration of Andrew Bailey, then the chief executive of the FCA, boiled over. He called for more assistance from the big internet service companies, particularly Google" on taking down obviously dodgy adverts quickly. If a bank or a regulated financial institution had received such a public shaming, immediate action would be expected.