Centre warns social media corporations of authorized motion over illegal content material

Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw has mentioned social media platforms should take duty for the content material they publish, noting {that a} Parliamentary Standing Committee has already beneficial a troublesome legislation to repair platform accountability.

“Social media must be chargeable for the content material they publish. Intervention is required,” Vaishnaw mentioned on the sidelines of a Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) occasion, responding to a query on AI app Grok producing indecent and vulgar pictures of ladies.

Earlier this week, the Centre warned on-line platforms, significantly social media corporations, of authorized penalties in the event that they fail to behave in opposition to obscene, vulgar, pornographic, paedophilic and different illegal content material. Vaishnaw mentioned the standing committee had beneficial that there’s a have to give you a “powerful legislation” to make social media accountable for content material they publish.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Data and Broadcasting has referred to as for higher accountability of social media and middleman platforms in relation to faux content material and information. Its suggestions embody imposing algorithmic transparency, imposing stricter fines and penalties for repeat offenders, organising an impartial regulatory physique, and utilizing technological instruments resembling AI to curb misinformation.

On December 29, MeitY issued an advisory asking social media corporations to right away assessment their compliance framework and take motion in opposition to obscene and illegal content material, warning that failure to conform might result in prosecution. The advisory adopted MeitY’s statement that platforms weren’t appearing strictly in opposition to obscene, vulgar and inappropriate content material.

Public coverage agency IGAP Accomplice Dhruv Garg mentioned the advisory doesn’t introduce new authorized obligations however reiterates that secure harbour safety hinges on strict adherence to due diligence necessities below the IT Guidelines, 2021. “Important social media intermediaries are topic to stricter due diligence benchmarks. They have to additionally deploy automated content material moderation instruments… Platforms should actively fulfil their authorized tasks or they might face prison prosecution,” he mentioned.

Luthra and Luthra Regulation Places of work India Senior Accomplice Sanjeev Kumar mentioned the advisory makes clear that non-compliance might lead to prosecution below the IT Act, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and different prison legal guidelines, and will result in lack of secure harbour safety below Part 79. “The cumulative influence of those provisions heightens authorized, monetary, and reputational threat,” he mentioned.

Discover to X

In the meantime, the federal government on Friday issued a stern discover to Elon Musk-owned social media platform X, directing it to right away take away vulgar, obscene and illegal content material, significantly content material generated utilizing the AI app Grok. MeitY issued the discover to the platform’s Chief Compliance Officer for India for failure to fulfill statutory due diligence obligations below the IT Act, 2000 and the IT Guidelines, 2021.

“…X is hereby directed to… take away or disable entry, directly, to all content material already generated or disseminated in violation of relevant legal guidelines,” the January 2 order mentioned, including that proof should not be tampered with. The ministry additionally directed X to take motion in opposition to offending content material, customers and accounts, and submit an motion taken report inside 72 hours.

The order mentioned the federal government has obtained representations that sure content material circulating on X might not adjust to legal guidelines referring to decency and obscenity. It famous that “Grok AI” is being misused to create and share obscene pictures or movies of ladies in a derogatory method. “Such conduct displays a severe failure of platform-level safeguards and enforcement mechanisms,” the order mentioned.

MeitY has additionally directed X to undertake a complete technical, procedural and governance assessment of Grok to make sure it doesn’t generate or facilitate illegal content material, warning that non-compliance might invite strict authorized motion below the IT Act, IT Guidelines, BNSS, BNS and different relevant legal guidelines.

Earlier within the day, Rajya Sabha member Priyanka Chaturvedi wrote to Vaishnaw searching for pressing intervention over rising misuse of the Grok AI app to create and flow into vulgar pictures of ladies on social media.