The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has issued an advisory to all intermediaries, ensuring compliance with existing IT rules. The directive targets the growing concerns around misinformation powered by AI, known as Deepfakes.
The advisory mandates that intermediaries must communicate prohibited content, particularly those listed under Rule 3(1)(b) of the IT Rules, clearly and precisely to users. This is the culmination of discussions held by Union Minister of State for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Electronics & IT, and Jal Shakti, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, during Digital India dialogues with intermediaries within one month.
The advisory states that the content not permitted under the IT Rules, in particular those listed under Rule 3(1)(b), must be clearly communicated to users in clear and precise language, including through its terms of service and user agreements. The same must be expressly informed to the user at the time of first-registration and as regular reminders, especially at every instance of login and while uploading/sharing information onto the platform.
Digital intermediaries must ensure users are informed about penal provisions, including those in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) 1860, the IT Act, 2000, and such other laws that may be attracted in case of violation of Rule 3(1)(b). The terms of service and user agreements must clearly highlight that intermediaries/platforms are under obligation to report legal violations to the law enforcement agencies under the relevant Indian laws applicable to the context.
Rule 3(1)(b) within the due diligence section of the IT rules mandates intermediaries to communicate their rules, regulations, privacy policy, and user agreement in the user’s preferred language. They are also obliged to ensure reasonable efforts to prevent users from hosting, displaying, uploading, modifying, publishing, transmitting, storing, updating, or sharing any information related to the 11 listed user harms or content prohibited on digital intermediaries.
Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar highlighted the urgency for all platforms and intermediaries to strictly adhere to the current laws and regulations, emphasizing that the IT rules comprehensively address the menace of deepfakes.
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