New Delhi, Nov 8 – In response to the recent deepfake video controversy involving a TV actress, the government issued an advisory on Tuesday to major social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. The directive urges platforms to promptly identify and remove deepfake content within 36 hours of receiving reports.
Citing provisions of the Information Technology (IT) Act, the Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY) emphasized that failure to comply could result in the loss of protection under Section 79(1) of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
The advisory follows the circulation of a deepfake video featuring TV actress Rashmika Mandanna, which was created by a UK-based Indian-origin social media influencer. The video, generated using artificial intelligence, portrayed Mandanna in a manipulated scenario of entering an elevator.
MeitY’s advisory instructs social media intermediaries to exercise due diligence and make reasonable efforts to identify and remove misinformation and deepfakes that violate regulations and user agreements.
Online platforms are required to take swift action against deepfake content, ensuring removal within 36 hours of reporting. This aligns with the timelines outlined in the IT Rules 2021, and platforms must disable access to the content promptly.
“The intermediaries were reminded that any failure to act as per the relevant provisions of the IT Act and Rules would attract Rule 7 of the IT Rules, 2021 and could render the organisation liable to losing the protection available under Section 79(1) of the Information Technology Act, 2000,” stated MeitY in an official statement.
