The government has reportedly expressed strong objection to child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in its talks with Meta and the communication has led to action and increased sensitivity on the issue.
The government had a “hard talk” with Meta on the issue and has clarified that circulation of CSAM content is a clear violation and there is no safe harbour in such cases, according to a report by news agency PTI.
Safe-harbour protection is available under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act and it protects intermediaries from being held legally responsible for third-party content hosted on their platforms.
Who said what
According to the report, the government explained to Meta that it only intends to ensure that Indian laws and norms are followed and that it doesn't want to censor or restrict coverage in any way.
Platforms have a responsibility to address social media harms and strike the right balance, the report quoted IT ministry sources as saying.
Meanwhile, Meta also clarified its position during talks and explained how its algorithms and systems work. The report quoted government as saying that deliberations on this front are underway and such matters involve "judgment calls, and tweaks".
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Meta also clarified its position during talks and explained how its algorithms and systems work. The report quoted government as saying that deliberations on this front are underway and such matters involve "judgment calls, and tweaks".
{{/usCountry}}The report also said that the WhatsApp username issue is under examination and is not limited to the platform alone. On AI labelling, a ministry official reportedly said the law is clear that synthetically generated content must be labelled.
Also Read: Why wasn’t child sexual abuse content reported to police, NCPCR asks Meta
SC notice to Centre
Alleged lapses by social media intermediaries in complying with safeguards against child sexual exploitation also came up during a recent Supreme Court hearing. A bench of justices JB Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran put the government on notice and sought response on a plea flagging concerns over protection of children from online sexual exploitation.
The court said the issues brought before it were a matter of “serious concern” and merited its “full and anxious consideration”.
The plea was filed by child rights NGO which alleged instances of online platforms carrying paid advertisements promoting CSAM which redirect user to third-party platforms that charge money for such content.
Second warning to Meta on safe-harbour protection?
Centre has clearly conveyed to Meta that there is no safe harbour if CSAM violates the law, PTI reported, making it the second such warning to Meta.
Earlier this month, Information Technology chairman and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had said that Meta could lose safe harbour if chief executive Mark Zuckerberg didn'r apologise for the temporary removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Facebook reel.
Hours later, a senior global executive at Meta had met Indian officials and apologised for PM Modi's temporary takedown of the reel. The apology was tendered by Meta's chief global officer Joel Kaplan to Union minister for electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw during a meeting, as reported by HT earlier.
(With PTI inputs)