Social media intermediaries who violate IT Rules may lose safe harbour protection: Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekar
The Hindu
Social media intermediaries must comply with IT Rules 2021 or face prosecution under IT Act & IPC.
Social media intermediaries who violate the Information Technology (IT) Rules, 2021 may lose their safe harbour protection and would be liable for prosecution under the IT Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), said Rajeev Chandrasekar, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology on Friday, December 15, 2023.
In his response to an unstarred questions raised by Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament Kanimozhi NVN Somu on steps taken to stop vulgarity and obscenity on social media, he said the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 were amended in October 2022 and April 2023.
The IT Rules, 2021, prohibit 11 types of content available on the internet to be made available on social media platforms. Intermediaries must ensure that users do not use their platform to share or transmit content violating the Rules.
The IT Rules also prohibit the use of obscene, pornographic, pedophilic content and content that is invasive of a person’s privacy. Noting that deep fakes are another form of misinformation powered by AI, the Minister said the IT Rules prohibit misinformation on the Indian internet. They mandate platforms to ensure that content violating the provisions of the Rules are removed or access is disabled upon court orders, complaints or notifications from authorised agencies.
Social media intermediaries must also cooperate with law enforcement agencies by enabling identification of the first originator of information that is related to the sovereignty of the nation, public order or related to offences such as rape or with regard to child sexual abuse material, he said.
Ms. Kanimozhi had raised questions on steps taken to curb obscenity that went under the guise of web series on social media networks and the government’s plans to bring amendments to the IT Act.
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