The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has issued a notice to various social media platforms, including Telegram, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube, instructing them to remove child sexual abuse material (CSAM) from their platforms in India. The notice emphasizes the need for proactive measures to take down CSAM swiftly and permanently. Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar has been a vocal advocate for the removal of such harmful content from the Indian internet, and this approach has become the ministry's policy vision.
MeitY has also stated that any delay in complying with these notices will lead to the withdrawal of their safe harbor protection under Section 79 of the IT Act.
Minister Chandrasekhar expressed a firm stance on Twitter, stating, "There will be ZERO tolerance for criminal & harmful content on Indian Internet. IT Rules under the IT Act clearly lay down the expectation from Intermediaries: They cannot host criminal & harmful content like CSAM."
The regulatory framework, specifically Rule 3(1)(b), mandates all intermediaries, regardless of their size, to make "reasonable efforts" to ensure their platforms do not contain content that is "obscene, pornographic, paedophilic," or "harmful to a child," among other criteria. Rule 4(4) applies to significant social media intermediaries, those with more than 50 lakh users in India, requiring them to "endeavor to deploy" technology-based solutions for proactive identification and removal of CSAM.
It's worth noting that the language in these rules, including phrases like "reasonable efforts" and "shall endeavor to," has been criticized for its ambiguity in determining whether adequate efforts have been made to remove CSAM.
Social media platforms like Twitter (now X) use PhotoDNA, developed by Microsoft, to detect and remove CSAM. However, concerns were raised about increased CSAM on the platform after changes in leadership. YouTube employs its in-house technology called CSAI Match for similar purposes.
In response to the ministry's notice, YouTube emphasized its zero-tolerance policy towards child sexual abuse material and its commitment to swiftly removing such content. Telegram, on the other hand, noted the banning of numerous groups and channels in October, pointing out the platform's limited transparency in publishing monthly reports.
Overall, the MeitY's notice underscores the Indian government's determination to combat the dissemination of CSAM and to hold social media platforms accountable for ensuring a safe online environment for users, especially children.
