( CNN ) -- Online classified service Craigslist 's decision to censor its adult services section could be a model for other websites , a leader in the fight against prostitution ads said Saturday . `` This step is very much in the right direction , '' said Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal , who spearheaded a letter from 17 attorneys general who recently banded together to urge Craigslist to discontinue its adult services section . The embattled website has been under fire for allegations that it promotes prostitution . `` These prostitution ads enable human trafficking and assaults on women , '' said Blumenthal . `` They are flagrant and rampant . Craigslist has lacked the wherewithal or will to effectively screen them out . '' The section that usually reads `` adult services '' on Craigslist was replaced by the word `` censored . '' It was not immediately clear whether Craigslist removed the adult services and replaced them with the `` censored '' section , which had a link that was not active . But for users who accessed the account outside the U.S. , the erotic services link was still active . Craigslist representatives told CNN on Saturday that they will release a statement at a later time . `` The message here is put people over profits , '' said Blumenthal , who is running for the U.S. Senate from Connecticut as a Democrat . He said officials will continue monitoring Craigslist and other websites for such content . `` The increasingly sharp public criticism of Craigslist 's Adult Services section reflects a growing recognition that ads for prostitution -- including ads trafficking children -- are rampant on it , '' the attorneys general had said in an Aug. 24 letter to Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster and Founder Craig Newmark . A Craigslist spokeswoman said at the time that the site agreed with at least some of the letter . `` We strongly support the attorneys general desire to end trafficking in children and women , through the Internet or by any other means , '' said Susan MacTavish Best , who handles press inquiries for Craigslist . `` We hope to work closely with them , as we are with experts at nonprofits and in law enforcement , to prevent misuse of our site in facilitation of trafficking , and to combat such crimes wherever they appear , online or offline . '' In their letter , the attorneys general highlighted an open letter , which appeared as a Washington Post ad , in which two girls said they were sold for sex on Craigslist . When the ad came out , Buckmaster wrote a blog post in response that said , `` Craigslist is anxious to know that the perpetrators in these girls ' cases are behind bars . '' The letter also highlighted a report in May by CNN 's Amber Lyon , who posted a fake ad for a girl 's services in the adult section . She received 15 calls soliciting sex in three hours . Earlier this month , Lyon interviewed a woman named `` Jessica '' who sells sex on Craigslist . The woman said a Craigslist ad was `` the fastest , quickest way you 're for sure going to see somebody that day . '' In a later blog post , Buckmaster said Craigslist implemented manual screening of adult services ads in May 2009 . `` Since that time , before being posted each individual ad is reviewed by an attorney , '' the post said . He said the attorneys are trained to enforce Craigslist 's posting guidelines , `` which are stricter than those typically used by yellow pages , newspapers , or any other company that we are aware of . '' Attorneys general from Arkansas , Connecticut , Idaho , Illinois , Iowa , Kansas , Maryland , Michigan , Mississippi , Missouri , New Hampshire , Ohio , Rhode Island , South Carolina , Tennessee , Texas and Virginia made the request a week after accused `` Craigslist killer '' Philip Markoff committed suicide in jail . Markoff was charged with the April 2009 killing of Julissa Brisman . Boston Police said that Brisman , a model , advertised as a masseuse on Craigslist , and Markoff might have met her through the website . In 2008 , under pressure from state prosecutors , the website raised the fees for posting adult services ads . In 2009 , it started donating portions of the money generated by adult ads to charity . A CNN investigation of Craigslist 's adult services section , which replaced `` erotic services ads '' two years ago , counted more than 7,000 ads in a single day . Many offered thinly veiled `` services '' for anything from $ 50 for a half-hour to $ 400 an hour . CNN 's Deborah Doft and Nicky Robertson contributed to this report .
Connecticut attorney general take action . The website ` ` ' '' replaces the section where adult services used to be . The website has been accused of promoting prostitution in its adult services section . Seventeen attorneys general urge Craigslist to replace the section .