New Delhi: The government Friday issued notices to social media companies X (formerly known as Twitter), YouTube and Telegram warning them to remove child sexual abuse materials from their platforms or face legal action.
“We have sent notices to X, Youtube and Telegram to ensure there are no Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) that exist on their platforms. The government is determined to build a safe and trusted internet under the IT rules,” minister of state for skill development and entrepreneurship and electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, in a statement on Friday.
“The IT rules under the IT Act lays down strict expectations from social media intermediaries that they should not allow criminal or harmful posts on their platforms. If they do not act swiftly, their safe harbour under section 79 of the IT Act would be withdrawn and consequences under the Indian law will follow.”
In a statement to Mint, a YouTube spokesperson said, “We have a zero-tolerance policy on child sexual abuse material. No form of content that endangers minors is acceptable to us. We have heavily invested in the technology and teams to fight child sexual abuse and exploitation online and take swift to remove it as quickly as possible. In Q2 2023, we removed over 94,000 channels and over 2.5 million videos for violations of our child safety policies. We will continue to work with experts inside and outside of YouTube to provide minors and families the best protections possible.”
Queries sent to Telegram and X did not immediately receive a response.
The ministry stated that notices specify that non-compliance with the requirements will be deemed a breach of Rule 3(1)(b) and Rule 4(4) of the IT Rules, 2021, and has warned the three social media intermediaries that any delay in complying with the notices will result in the withdrawal of their safe harbor protection under Section 79 of the IT Act, which currently shields them from legal liability.
The notices served to these platforms also emphasize the importance of prompt and permanent removal or disabling of access to any CSAM on their platforms. They also call for the implementation of proactive measures, such as content moderation algorithms and reporting mechanisms, to prevent the dissemination of CSAM in the future.
Some industry executives expressed surprise over the issuance of the notice, claiming that there were no immediate compliance issues that were highlighted. A senior policy consultant, who works with multiple Big Tech firms, said, “We couldn’t yet ascertain if there is any social body that is behind triggering this notice—which is often the case leading up to such notices. Most tech platforms, including the ones named in Meity’s notice on Friday, have been in active discussions with Meity through numerous consultations, and it remains unclear as to what may have triggered this.”
A senior lawyer who represents compliance with IT policies for global tech firms, requesting anonymity since he represents clients in this space, further said, “There should be no immediate compliance repercussions, since the firms mentioned in the notice have been actively engaged with Meity over multiple issues—including discussions on CSAM itself during the consultation period for the DPDP Act. There have also been no legal triggers in the immediate time frame, and we’ll need to wait and see how this pans out.”
The Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000, provides the legal framework for addressing pornographic content, including CSAM. Sections 66E, 67, 67A, and 67B of the IT Act impose stringent penalties and fines for the online transmission of obscene or pornographic content.
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