The Indian government will not relax new, stricter deadlines for social media platforms to remove harmful content, prioritizing citizen protection. The rules, which took effect in February, significantly shorten takedown times, including requiring removal of non-consensual intimate imagery within two hours and addressing other unlawful content within three hours.
While officials are firm on the timelines, the Ministry of Electronics and IT remains open to discussions with platforms about the technical aspects of compliance. Social media companies have expressed concerns about the operational feasibility of the accelerated deadlines, but the government asserts they have the proven capability to meet them.
The main topics covered are the government's stance on stricter content removal rules, the specific new compliance timelines, and the ongoing dialogue between the government and social media intermediaries regarding implementation challenges.
The government will not ease rules mandating faster content removal by social media platforms, prioritising the protection of citizens in the digital space, officials told ET.
However, they said the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) has signaled that it remains open to further talks on the technical aspects of complying with the rules, alluding to the opposition the Centreâs move has evoked.
Last month, amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) rules had necessitated quicker compliance in a series of cases, including unlawful content, deepfakes targeting women and children, and non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII).
Coming into effect within just ten days, on February 20, the new rules cut down the minimum time given to platforms for resolving user reported grievances to seven days from 15 earlier, while mandating that NCII be taken down within two hours, as opposed to 24 hours earlier.
The move to reduce the compliance time has not been taken lightly, a MeitY official stressed. "There was broad consensus within the government that the earlier timelines were lengthy. Incidents of unlawful content going viral within hours of being posted may create a law and order issue,â the official said. âOther forms of content that compromise the privacy or dignity of users should also be removed swiftly."
The notified rules are not expected to see any further amendments to ease the timelines for content removal, he stressed. Instead, the government will continue to engage with all social media intermediaries on the technicalities of compliance with takedown orders, he hinted.
Also Read: Meta flags âoperational challengesâ in Indiaâs 3-hour takedown rule, backs consultative AI regulations
At a meeting with the ministry last week, some intermediaries had complained of operational feasibility in adhering to the shorter deadlines, especially for removing unlawful content within three hours, down from the earlier deadline of 36 hours, ministry officials said.
"But social media intermediaries possess proven capabilities to scrub content expeditiously, in this, and other jurisdictions. This was pointed out to them," another official said. âIt is entirely possible for all entities to put in the necessary systems to comply with the rules.â
However, multiple participants present at the meeting said social media intermediaries may not be able to comply fully.
"It is not technologically or operationally feasible to implement this immediately. It would require significant manpower and system development," said a participant at the meeting who requested not to be named. "The government also indicated that the ministry would not act as an arbiter. Whether a platform did âenoughâ would be decided in a court of law," he said.
Also Read: Tighter takedown rules are for all social media content
However, they said the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) has signaled that it remains open to further talks on the technical aspects of complying with the rules, alluding to the opposition the Centreâs move has evoked.
Last month, amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) rules had necessitated quicker compliance in a series of cases, including unlawful content, deepfakes targeting women and children, and non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII).
Coming into effect within just ten days, on February 20, the new rules cut down the minimum time given to platforms for resolving user reported grievances to seven days from 15 earlier, while mandating that NCII be taken down within two hours, as opposed to 24 hours earlier.
The move to reduce the compliance time has not been taken lightly, a MeitY official stressed. "There was broad consensus within the government that the earlier timelines were lengthy. Incidents of unlawful content going viral within hours of being posted may create a law and order issue,â the official said. âOther forms of content that compromise the privacy or dignity of users should also be removed swiftly."
The notified rules are not expected to see any further amendments to ease the timelines for content removal, he stressed. Instead, the government will continue to engage with all social media intermediaries on the technicalities of compliance with takedown orders, he hinted.
Also Read: Meta flags âoperational challengesâ in Indiaâs 3-hour takedown rule, backs consultative AI regulations
At a meeting with the ministry last week, some intermediaries had complained of operational feasibility in adhering to the shorter deadlines, especially for removing unlawful content within three hours, down from the earlier deadline of 36 hours, ministry officials said.
"But social media intermediaries possess proven capabilities to scrub content expeditiously, in this, and other jurisdictions. This was pointed out to them," another official said. âIt is entirely possible for all entities to put in the necessary systems to comply with the rules.â
However, multiple participants present at the meeting said social media intermediaries may not be able to comply fully.
"It is not technologically or operationally feasible to implement this immediately. It would require significant manpower and system development," said a participant at the meeting who requested not to be named. "The government also indicated that the ministry would not act as an arbiter. Whether a platform did âenoughâ would be decided in a court of law," he said.
Also Read: Tighter takedown rules are for all social media content
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