Advertising Standards Authority of Britain is concerned about the growing gray area on the web where misinformation and misleading advertisements may run amock. This regulatory agency plans to extend it’s influence into the social media world and over company websites.

What lead to the problem is that a growing number of companies are shifting their marketing efforts away from traditional advertising and into more independent vehicles such as company websites, micro-sites, blogs and into social media campaigns. These areas do not carry the same level of oversight as banner ads, print campaigns and text advertising in the UK.

The UK is facing pressure to move regulation into more parts of the web from the European Commission in Brussels. In the US, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has published guidelines for social media and blogs, but the UK approach is a bit heavier handed as it includes tough penalties for violators.