Yahoo Inc. closed some of its chatrooms today, after reports that sexual predators were found.

In question were user names such as “Girls 13 and under for older guys” and “Girls 13 and up for much older men,” which had been released by KPRC, a Houston television station.

At least three major advertisers– Pepsi Cola, Statefarm Insurance and Georgia Pacific– withdrew their ads after they were also discovered in the chatrooms.

Spokeswoman Mary Osako said those chatrooms were shut down in the past week, but that other chatrooms remain open.

According to Reuters, Osako has declined to confirm or deny the findings, only saying Yahoo is “working on improvements to the service to enhance the user experience and compliance with our terms of service. Yahoo condemns abuse of Internet tools and services for illegal activity.”

However, Dave DeCesso, a representative from Pepsi Cola, confirmed the findings after KPRC contacted them in April to warn their ads were being associated with the chat rooms.

A child pornography investigation launched by the FBI has ultimately led to the arrest of more than 100 Yahoo users in the U.S.






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