On February 25, the government had come up with Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 that digital rights experts said would “fundamentally” change the Indian internet. The rules, drafted in an opaque manner with no public consultation, were criticised for being a back door to implement “political censorship” of content. The Rules apply to all “significant” social media companies and messaging-related intermediaries with over 50 lakh users, such as Signal and Telegram and Twitter, besides Facebook.
Activists had said that its implementation would lead to stricter and more opaque manner of content takedown. Governments could direct social media companies to take down content within 36 hours, and the failure to do so would result in criminal prosecution. The rules, they said, also pose a threat to end-to-end encryption as they stress on the importance of tracing the first originator of a message on social media.
Highlights
Facebook to comply with IT rules.
Facebook working to implement operational process.
New Delhi: With the deadline on the provisions of the IT rules getting over, Facebook on Tuesday said it is working to implement operational processes and aims to comply with that. The provisions of the IT rules is coming into effect from tomorrow (Wednesday, May 26).
The social media giant, added that it continues to discuss a few of the issues which need more engagement with the government. We aim to comply with the provisions of the IT rules and continue to discuss a few of the issues which need more engagement with the government. Pursuant to the IT rules, we are working to implement operational processes and improve efficiencies, said a Facebook spokesperson.
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Updated:
May 25, 2021 08:09 IST
The industry has requested a re-think over a clause in the new rules which can lead to imposition of criminal liability upon the employees for non-compliance by intermediaries.
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The industry has requested a re-think over a clause in the new rules which can lead to imposition of criminal liability upon the employees for non-compliance by intermediaries.
The three-month deadline for social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to comply with new stricter rules for intermediaries ends on Tuesday, even as at least five industry bodies, including CII and the U.S.-India Business Council (USIBC), have asked the government for up to a one-year compliance window, particularly in the view of the pandemic.
NEW DELHI: Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter could lose their status as an internet intermediary within two days if they do not comply with the government s new rules notified under the IT Act notified in February. The new rules come into effect on May 26.
The loss of intermediary status would mean every user post on these platforms would be considered as being published by the companies, making them criminally liable for any content deemed illegal. As a publisher, platforms will have to proactively censor content before they appear online like the China s internet. But platforms are continuing to negotiate and are seeking six months time to comply with the new rules.