By Shona Ghosh

Posted on 14 Oct 2013 at 16:06

WHSmith has taken its website offline until it has removed all self-published material from its ebook listings.

The move follows an investigation from The Kernel, which found a number of booksellers, including WHSmith, Amazon and Barnes & Noble, all selling offensive self-published ebooks depicting rape, incest and bestiality through their sites with little to no filtering.

WHSmith takes content from third-party supplier Kobo via an automated feed, which includes a number of explicit, self-published titles. The company said it was "disgusted" by the material and that it was now removing such self-published titles from its listings.

Due to the massive amount of self-publishing, a number of these titles have got through the screening process

The company added that the growing volume of self-published titles made the material increasingly difficult to police. "It is our policy not to feature titles like those highlighted and we have processes in place to screen them out," a spokesperson said.

"Due to the massive amount of self-publishing, a number of these titles have got through the screening process," the spokesperson added. "We sincerely apologise for any offence caused."

The company said it wouldn't sell self-published titles until it was "completely confident" that its screening was up to scratch.

Kobo hasn't responded to a request for comment, but told the BBC that its rapid response team was working on removing the offending titles from its catalogue.

WHSmith is Kobo's only UK partner, but the issue still appears to be affecting its other major European customer, French site FNAC. A quick search by PC Pro found at least six graphic titles still on sale, apparently available to download without any age warnings.

Industry-wide problem

WHSmith pointed out that policing self-published material was an "industry-wide" problem, with Amazon and Barnes & Noble also affected. The latter firms have also said they're working on removing the offensive listings from their sites.

Foyles, also reported to have been affected, said none of the offending self-published ebooks were available through its site. However, it added some offensive material might be available in print, and that it was working with its supplier, Nielsen, to address the issue.