The government wrote to major social media platforms today, asking for a response “as soon as possible, preferably today,” on whether they had complied with new digital rules that go into effect today.
Platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter have been given three months to comply with the new rules, which require them to appoint an Indian compliance officer, set up a grievance response mechanism, and remove content within 36 hours of receiving a legal order.
“Please confirm and share your response ASAP and preferably today itself,” the Ministry of Electronics and IT wrote in a note to the companies, requesting information on their compliance status.
The names and contact information for a chief compliance officer, a nodal contact person, a resident grievance officer, and the company’s physical address in India must be provided.
The new rules require sites to set up a system for responding to complaints and to track down the “first originator” of information that threatens India’s sovereignty, state security, or public order.
If they don’t follow the rules, “significant social media intermediaries,” or large sites that host third-party information, messages, and posts, risk facing lawsuits and prosecution.
This means that big tech companies can no longer act as mere intermediaries, which previously provided them with legal immunity from user-posted objectionable content. They’ll be treated the same as any other publishing platform, and they could face consequences.
WhatsApp has taken the rules to court, claiming that it will be forced to trace the origin of messages and violate users’ privacy protections.
Facebook and Google have stated that they will comply. Facebook also wants to talk about some issues which need more engagement.”
Twitter has yet to respond; it is embroiled in the “Congress toolkit” tweet controversy and is on the government’s and Delhi Police’s radar for labeling a BJP leader’s post as “manipulated media.”
