Centre tells Meta no safe harbour for CSAM violations

The Centre has told Meta that safe harbour protections under Section 79 of the IT Act will not cover individuals involved in child sexual abuse material (CSAM) violations, government sources told ANI. The government stressed it has acted only within existing legal powers, and its aim is not censorship but preventing harm to India's social fabric, sources added. Meta has reportedly shown increased sensitivity and is filtering unlawful content.

The government also conveyed that Meta's content moderation must reflect India's linguistic and cultural context, not just global standards, sources said. AI-generated content must be clearly labelled, the Centre stated, citing users' right to know if content is synthetic. The discussions come after a July notice to Meta over Instagram ads allegedly promoting CSAM, and follow a Supreme Court notice to the government on a plea about online child exploitation, Hindustan Times reports.

The WhatsApp username issue is also being examined from an industry-wide perspective, officials said. The government will continue to monitor platform accountability, user safety, and emerging technologies, sources told ANI.