Social Media and OTT platforms have certainly come a long way and their journey through the past decade reflects upon the fact that they are no longer just a means of communication or entertainment. It would not be an exaggeration to state that they have become the powerful ‘Tech-Giants’ dominating across the globe. Especially the tremendous rise of such platforms during this pandemic cannot be debated at all.

Right from a Google search about your pet food to your Instagram profile suggesting multiple ads about the same; I am sure even your curiosity has been ticked, questioning about the mechanism working behind! If “Privacy” has actually been a matter of concern to these devious Tech-giants, you would not have been eye-washed for so long through the ‘pop-up consent agreement tabs’ flashing your screen. Also, with such a dense web of content-creators and content-consumers along with an ocean of data floating around, the audience is left completely vulnerable to the ‘narratives’ being pushed forward via such platforms. Usually these platforms carry a self-governing mechanism to control and filter the content on their respective platforms. This self-governing algorithm is followed by Facebook, Instagram and YouTube as well where they have derived rules of what is “acceptable” as per their community guidelines. Yet there is no adequate redressal forum to reach out the authorities and rampant abuse of these platforms are at high rise.

Here comes the role of responsible State machinery to counter such malign narratives, safeguard its citizens and draw a balance approach in conformity with the privacy of its citizen as well as its national interest.

Hence many major powers of the world have amended their social media guidelines and regulatory laws in order to formulate a coherent functioning of the state against the relative threats posed by these Tech-giants. In India on May 26, new rules came into force to regulate Digital Content, featuring a Code of Ethics and a 3-tier grievance redressal framework under the Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries & Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. Ironically, the day it came into enforcement, entire media lobby was flooded with baseless contentions regarding the new laws.

Therefore, before proceeding further with India’s amendments let’s have a look at how various other Nations have legislated upon the same:

United Kingdom:

• The new UK laws passed in year 2020 set to fine social media firms up to £18mn or ten per cent of annual global turnover of tech firms, whichever is higher, will be slapped on tech firms that fail to remove and limit the spread of illegal content under new laws and block non-compliant services from being accessed in the UK.

• The UK legislature intends to enforce a “new age of accountability” for social media and it includes the power to hold senior managers of the tech companies liable. The rules are enforceable upon social media sites, websites, apps, instant messaging platforms, dating apps, commercial pornographic websites, online forums, video games, online marketing sites and other services which host user-generated content or allow people to talk to others online will need to remove and limit the spread of illegal content such as child sexual abuse, terrorist material and suicide content.

European Union:

• In December 2020 Europe also initiated amendments to regulate US tech giants. EU officials published two proposals covering the regulation of big tech companies. The EU introduced the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which set rules on how companies, including social media platforms, store and use people’s data.

• EU has considered to direct a strict clampdown against extremist content especially terror videos and has also issued directives regarding copyright infringement.

AUSTRALIA:

• Australia was better quick at apprehending the unscrupulous nature of these social media/digital media platforms. It was after 2014, when Charlotte Dawson, a TV presenter and a judge on Australia’s Next Top Model committed suicide following a campaign on cyber-bullying against her on twitter and suffered depression. 
• A legislation was introduced in 2015 by the Australian Government, Enhancing Online Safety Actwhich designated an  eSafety Commissioner with the power to demand that social media companies should take down harassing or abusive posts. Australia revised the law in 2018 expanding the eSafety Commissioner’s power.
• According to Australia’s Sharing of Abhorrent Violent Material Act, 2019 social media companies would be charged with criminal and financial penalties along with possible jail sentences for tech executives for up to three years.

CHINA: While the left-ecosystem rants about freedom of speech and liberty, they possibly turn a blind eye towards their beloved China.

• The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is tightening its control over the state bureaucracy, the media, online speech, religious groups, universities, businesses, and civil society associations, and it has undermined its own already modest rule-of-law reforms. China’s authoritative regime has blocked major news and social media hubs like Twitter, Whatsapp, Facebook, Youtube.  Their services are provided instead by Chinese providers such as Weibo, Baidu and WeChat.

• China has hundreds of thousands of cyber-police, who monitor social media platforms and screen messages that are deemed to be politically sensitive.

INDIA: Now that we have a glimpse of the social media regulatory framework followed by various other nations, let’s move forward to studying what Indian Government has it in her bag, under its new IT guidelines which fired the widespread fear among social media users that Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram & Twitter would be outlawed in the nation.

The Information Technology (Intermediaries Guidelines & Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 referred to as the new IT Rules 2021 are now in force from May 26, 2021. Though the government has already provided a grace period of 3-months which started from 25 February 2021 to these social media networks to comply by the law of the land and make necessary arrangements under as per the prescribed guidelines.

Salient Features of the new IT Rules, 2021:

Guidelines Related to Social Media to Be Administered by Ministry of Electronics and IT:

1. Grievance Redressal Mechanism: Intermediaries shall appoint a Grievance Officer to deal with such complaints. Grievance Officer shall acknowledge the complaint within twenty four hours and resolve it within fifteen days from its receipt.
2. Companies will also have to remove prohibited content within 36 hours of receiving a notice from the government if it is against security of India, incites rape or otherwise harms the dignity of a woman or children, promotes money laundering, gambling, is racially or ethnically objectionable or any other act contrary to Laws of India.
3. Appoint a Chief Compliance Officer who shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with the Act and Rules. It also states to appoint a Nodal Contact Person, Resident Grievance Officer for 24×7 hours coordination with law enforcement agencies. All such persons shall be a resident in India.
4. Publish a monthly compliance report mentioning the details of complaints received and action taken on the complaints.
5. Enabling identification of the first originator for the prevention, detection of an information of offence against national interest, security of State, friendly relations with foreign States as per the Constitution of India also covering offence against dignity of women, child sexual abuse or other sexually explicit material. Intermediary shall not be required to disclose the contents of any message or any other information to the first originator.

Way forward in case of non-compliance by the companies:

Failure to comply with the new IT Rules, 2021 will lead to abrogation of “safe harbor” indemnity provided to social media intermediaries under Section 79 of IT Act. The social media intermediary could be held liable as a ‘party’ in a case against someone if it does not complies with the terms and conditions of the new IT guidelines 2021.   

Section 79 of the Information Technology Act 2000:

• It states that any intermediary shall not be held legally or otherwise liable for any third-party information, data, or communication link made available or hosted on its platform.
• The protection is available if the intermediary doesn’t: initiate the transmission of the message in question, select the receiver of the transmitted message, modify any information contained in the transmission or tamper with any evidence of the concerned messages
• Further, the intermediary wouldn’t be granted protection if it does not immediately disable access to the material under question as per the government order

Significance of the new IT Rules, 2021:

• In exercise of power under section 87(2) of Information Technology Act, 2000 the government issued these new guidelines to the significant social media intermediaries having more than over 50 Lakh registered users over their platform including digital media and over-the-top (OTT) platforms as well. 
• The new IT rules 2021 seek to provide compliance of law and a grievance redressal mechanism for users of social media platforms, messaging applications, streaming services as also digital news publishers. As UK initiated amendments considering the “new age of accountability” concept, India too needs to move.  Over the years, the increasing instances of misuse of social media by criminals, anti-national elements have brought new challenges for law enforcement agencies. These include inducement for recruitment of terrorists, circulation of obscene content, spread of disharmony, financial frauds, incitement of violence, public order etc.

• The world has witnessed how major tech-giants are often found indulged in propagating their own ‘narratives and double standards’ while engaging with its audience. This has given rise to the question as to “why we should let these foreign giants dictate over the Law of the land?”

• It is the need of the hour for India to set these Tech-giants accountable and ensure compliance to domestic laws as countries like UK, Germany, Australia, Europe etc. have already done it.

The views expressed are personal.