Govt looks at IT rules to make WhatsApp disclose source ID
By MYBRANDBOOK
With the country heading for Lok Sabha elections in 2024, the Centre is looking to invoke a controversial law that would require WhatsApp to share details about the first originator of a message on account of rising AI-led misinformation on the platform. The basis for this is deepfake videos of politicians circulating on WhatsApp. The government is understood to be in the process of sending an order to WhatsApp under the IT Rules, 2021.
A deepfake is a video of a person in which the face or body has been digitally altered so that he or she appears to be someone else, typically used to spread false information.
“It’s not about partisanship. The videos in question depicted deepfakes of politicians from different political parties. Such fake videos of politicians from across the political aisle have been brought to our notice, which we believe can cause harm to electoral integrity in India. So, we are planning to send a first originator notice to WhatsApp,” a senior government official remarked.
The move is seen as controversial given that WhatsApp and Facebook challenged the provision in Delhi High Court in 2021, saying it will “severely undermine” the privacy of their users.
The case is currently sub judice.
But this underlines the friction that social media platforms and the government share when it comes to grappling with issues such as online misinformation, especially during elections when such content typically soars on Internet platforms.
This would be the first time that the Central government will directly send an Internet platform an order under Section 4 (2) of the IT Rules, 2021.
“The anonymous use of messaging platforms to propagate fake videos and audio is a major challenge we are grappling with. The traceability provision needs to be invoked to create some accountability and put brakes on this practice,” Chandrasekhar said without naming the platform, when asked for his comment.
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