Craigslist is dropping its "erotic services" ads and creating a new "adult" category that will be reviewed by employees of the online classified service, the Illinois attorney general's office said.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan was informed of Craigslist's decision to stop running "erotic services" ads in a telephone call with representatives of the San Francisco-based company, her office said in a statement.

Madigan's office said Craigslist had stopped accepting "erotic services" ads from late Tuesday and that all ads posted on the site would expire within seven days.

Craiglist, it said, planned to create a new "adult services" category and every ad posted to this new category would be reviewed by Craigslist staff.

Nude and graphic photos would not be allowed.

Craiglist has been under pressure for months from law enforcement in several states to drop its "erotic services" section.

The pressure intensified recently with the high-profile arrest of a Boston medical student charged with murdering a woman who had posted an ad on Craigslist.

Attorneys general from several US states met with Craigslist earlier this month to discuss their concerns that the free online classified service is being used to advertise prostitution.

Agence France-Presse