Centre asks social media platforms to take decisive action against 'deepfakes'

New Delhi: The Indian government on Wednesday called upon online platforms to take “decisive action” against the spread of ‘deepfakes.’

Deepfakes are synthetic media, including images, videos, and audio, generated by artificial intelligence (AI) technology that portray something that does not exist in reality or events that have never occurred.

The companies have been asked to ensure that “due diligence” is exercised and “reasonable efforts” are made to identify misinformation and deepfakes, and in particular, “information that violates the provisions of rules and regulations and/or user agreements,” stated a government release.

Companies have also been tasked with ensuring that users are not able to host such content. Any such content should be removed within 36 hours of reporting, stated the communique. “Ensure expeditious action, well within the timeframes stipulated under the IT Rules 2021, and disable access to the content or information,” it added. “Failure to comply with this requirement invokes Rule 7, which empowers aggrieved individuals to take platforms to court under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). It is imperative that platforms take proactive measures to combat this threat,” Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Electronics and IT, said.

The intermediaries were reminded that any failure to act as per provisions of the IT Act and Rules would attract Rule 7 of the IT Rules, 2021, and could render the organisation liable to losing government protection.

“Safety and trust of our digital nagriks (citizens) is our unwavering commitment and a top priority for the Narendra Modi government,” said Chandrasekhar. He added the new advisory had been issued owing to the “significant challenges posed by misinformation and deepfakes.”

“Deepfakes are a major violation and harm women in particular,” he said, adding, “Our Government takes the responsibility of safety and trust of all nagriks very seriously, and more so about our children and women who are targeted by such content.”

He further added that it is a “legal obligation” for online platforms to prevent the spread of misinformation by any user under the Information Technology (IT) rules, 2021. 

“For those who find themselves impacted by deepfakes, I strongly encourage you to file First Information Reports (FIRs) at your nearest police station and avail the remedies provided under the Information Technology (IT) rules, 2021,” the Minister said while summing up.

The Indian government advisory comes in the wake of actress Rashmika Mandanna's face being morphed into an Instagram video posted by a British-Indian woman named Zara Patel. Amitabh Bachchan, who co-starred with Mandanna in ‘Goodbye’ last year, has said there was "a strong case for legal action."

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