The Center is taking swift measures to curb the growing menace of deepfakes across social media. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) will now appoint an officer designated to take action against deepfakes. The government will also develop a website for users to flag deepfakes and other IT rule violations. Meanwhile, MeitY has issued a directive to social media platforms, requiring them to align their terms of service and policies with Indian laws within seven days to remove deepfakes. The government had already issued an advisory of a Rs 1 lakh fine and a jail term of three years for the culprits.
The Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, conveyed this decision following discussions with the platforms. He emphasized that non-compliance could result in action under current IT rules, specifically Rule 3(1)(b), which mandates the prompt removal of 11 types of malicious content within a period of 24 hours. Chandrasekhar asserted the government’s commitment to addressing 100 percent of violations under the IT Rules, signaling a stringent approach to enforcing compliance.
The Ministry of Electronics and IT will also assist users affected by deepfakes in filing FIRs (First Information Reports), with an appointed officer designated under Rule 7 to oversee a mechanism for user complaints. This announcement follows a declaration by the Minister of Electronics and IT, Ashwini Vaishnaw, indicating the government’s intention to formulate dedicated regulations addressing deepfakes and acknowledging growing concerns about the misuse of artificial intelligence in disseminating disinformation.
The government came into action with IT regulations for deepfakes after a manipulated video of actress Rashmika Mandanna went viral. The viral video showed her morphed face on top of a social media influencer, entering an elevator. There was widespread outrage on social media over the deepfake, prompting Bollywood luminaries to condemn the act. Deepfakes have been a cause of concern for over half a decade now, with the AI-enabled technology evolving at breakneck pace and the tools being released for the lay. If you stumble across a shady alley on the internet, you’ll know exactly. It is the same ol’ vice of photoshopping (or chopping) a victim in a lewd image. Deepfakes have dangerous implications, including the dissemination of propaganda images, videos, and news. It can affect elections and topple governments.
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