Facebook, YouTube Said to Be Warned Against Misuse of Deepfakes by Indian Government

Alphabet's Google, which owns YouTube, said in a statement it was committed to responsible AI development and has robust policies and systems.

By Reuters | Updated: 24 November 2023 22:14 IST

Facebook, YouTube Said to Be Warned Against Misuse of Deepfakes by Indian Government

Countries across the world are racing to draw up rules to regulate AI

Highlights

It comes amid growing concerns over deepfakes
IT ministry said all platforms had agreed to align with government rules
India has been tightening regulations of social media companies

India's government on Friday warned social media firms including Facebook and YouTube to repeatedly remind users that local laws prohibit them from posting deepfakes and content that spreads obscenity or misinformation, two sources told Reuters.

The warning was conveyed by deputy IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar in a closed-door meeting where he said many companies had not updated their usage terms despite 2022 rules that prohibit content "harmful" to children, obscene or that "impersonates another person".

It comes amid growing concerns over deepfakes — realistic yet fabricated videos created by artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms trained on online footage — which a top minister this week said this week India is drawing up rules to address.

[Sponsored] Samsung Galaxy S24: The Ultimate Camera Phone With Smarter On-Device AI

Chandrasekhar said the companies must raise awareness of the rules by reminding users every time they log in that they cannot post such content, or by issuing reminders.

He said otherwise he will issue directions forcing them to do so, said the two sources, who declined to be named as the meeting was private.

The minister described it as a "non-negotiable" demand of the Indian government during the meeting, said one of the sources.

Vivo Could Release Flat-Screen Version of X100 Series Next Year: Report

India's IT ministry said in a press statement all platforms had agreed to align their content guidelines with government rules.

Facebook and Chandrasekhar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Alphabet's Google, which owns YouTube, said in a statement it was committed to responsible AI development and has robust policies and systems to identify and remove harmful content across its products and platforms.

Infinix Smart 8 HD Confirmed to Launch in India on This Date

The Indian government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have raised concerns over deepfakes in recent days.

During a virtual summit of G20 nations on Wednesday, Prime Minister Modi called on global leaders to jointly work towards regulating AI, and raised concerns over the negative impact of deepfakes on society.

Countries across the world are racing to draw up rules to regulate AI. India has been tightening regulations of social media companies, which count the South Asian nation as a top growth market.

Last year, the government privately criticized the companies for not removing what it described as fake news on their sites, which it said had forced it to order content takedowns.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

Is the iQoo Neo 7 Pro the best smartphone you can buy under Rs. 40,000 in India? We discuss the company's recently launched handset and what it has to offer on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Vibrant displays, folding display is durable
Compact design when folded
Top-tier performance
Fast wireless charging for a foldable
Water-resistant design
Good quality primary camera

Bad
Cover screen functionality is limited
Battery barely lasts a day
Relatively slow wired charging
No macro camera

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 review

Display (Primary) 6.70-inch

Processor Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

Front Camera 10-megapixel

Rear Camera 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 10-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB

Battery Capacity 3700mAh

OS Android 13

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.