The San Francsico, California based Craigslist website has long been at the forefront of current tech media coverage due to its immense popularity, but it appears that the darker side of its services may be bringing in not only profits, but a fair amount of criticism lately, as well. This is due to the fact that the site has been tied to various crimes around the United States and raised the suspicions of both federal and state level authorities who accuse it of catering to a criminal element. While Craigslist defense includes calling upon the US Communications Decency Act, some authorities and social groups have maintained that the site is allowing ads that might draw in a great deal of traffic, but which also lead to the furthering of illicit activities in the communities that Craigslist services. In its defense, Craigslist states that they have gone to great ends to protect minors and avoid any and all posting of ads that would break any state, local or federal laws.
An organization called Advanced Interactive Media Group (AIM) has said that the nearly $40 million in revenue Craigslist is expected to bring in this year alone has experienced a 22 per cent jump based primarily on its mature content ads which cost $10 for initial posting and $5 for each additional post. This leaves many to wonder if the site might be profiting from activities that are less than savory, but privacy experts warn against censoring public use of websites such as Craigslist could lead to restriction of freedoms across the web.