New Delhi: The policies of the Central Government are aimed at ensuring an open, safe, trusted ,and accountable Internet for its users.
The Information Technology Act, 2000 (“IT Act”) provides punishment for publishing or transmitting obscene material and material containing sexually explicit act in electronic form. The IT Act also has stringent punishment for publishing or transmitting of material depicting children in sexually explicit act in electronic form.
Also, the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (“IT Rules, 2021”) casts obligations on the intermediaries, including social media intermediaries, to observe due diligence and if they fail to observe such due diligence, they lose the exemption from their liability under law for third-party information or data or communication link hosted by them. Such due diligence includes that in case a significant social media intermediary is providing services primarily in the nature of messaging shall enable the identification of the first originator of the information on its computer resource for the purposes of prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution or punishment of an offence related to rape, sexually explicit material or child sexual abuse material.
Such due diligence also includes that intermediaries shall remove within 24 hours any content which prima facie exposes the private area of any individual, shows such individual in full or partial nudity or shows or depicts such individual in any sexual act or conduct. Further, the rules provide for the establishment of one or more Grievance Appellate Committee(s) to allow users to appeal against decisions taken by Grievance Officers of social media intermediary on such complaints.
To ensure a good and healthy entertainment in accordance with the provisions of the Cinematograph Act 1952 and the Cinematograph (Certification) Rules 1983, Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), regulates the public exhibition of films including adult films. According to the guidelines issued by them, films which are considered unsuitable for exhibition to non-adults shall be certified for exhibition to adult audiences only.
Further for online publishers of curated content, the IT Rules, 2021 prescribes the code of ethics publishers of online curated content, commonly known as OTT Platforms. This code requires the OTT Platforms to classify content in specified age-appropriate categories, restrict access of age-inappropriate content by children, and implement an age verification mechanism for content classified as “Adult”.