The Federal Trade Commission has begun a preliminary investigation into the purchase of DoubleClick by Google, reports The Boston Globe.
The agency actually began last week, a move that was largely expected given the size of the purchase and the concerns voiced over the resulting collection of private data. This phase of the process is meant only to determine whether another, more in-depth investigation is needed.

Many privacy groups raised concerns with the FTC in the immediate wake of the deal's announcement. Google has said the deal can weather federal scrutiny.