India scrutinizes whether Meta's recommendation system exceeds intermediary status

Published Aug 8, 04:47 PM UTC

The Indian government is scrutinizing whether Meta's recommendation systems and paid content promotion align with its legal status as an intermediary under the Information Technology Act. Government sources indicate that if Meta actively decides what content is shown to users, it may cross into the role of a publisher, losing the 'safe harbour' protections under Section 79 of the IT Act. The government has held multiple rounds of discussions with Meta, questioning its global team on issues including deepfakes, child sexual abuse material, unlabelled synthetic content, and recommendation system functioning. Officials warn that failure to comply with due diligence obligations could result in loss of liability exemption and consequential legal action. The government plans to review outcomes before seeking legal opinion and will also engage with other platforms on similar issues.