New Delhi
The government has urged digital platforms to devise technical and procedural solutions to combat misinformation, a move aimed at safeguarding society and democracy, as stated by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. He emphasized the necessity of a robust legal framework to counter deepfakes and misinformation, which will be finalized post-elections. Ahead of the impending polls in India, digital platforms have intensified their efforts to ensure the integrity of elections. Through advisories and directives, the government has underscored its intolerance toward the dissemination of deepfakes and misinformation on social media and similar platforms. In a recent interview, Vaishnaw emphasized the detrimental impact of misinformation on society, democracy, and electoral processes. He stressed the government’s discussions with digital platforms to implement preventive measures and reiterated the need for a comprehensive legal structure, possibly incorporated within the proposed Digital India Act. Last week, the government issued an advisory mandating social media and other platforms to label AI models under development and prevent the hosting of unlawful content. This move came in response to concerns raised after Google’s AI tool Gemini provided an objectionable response regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Globally, concerns over AI bias and digital misinformation have escalated, particularly amid the surge of elections across nations. Vaishnaw highlighted the responsibility of platforms to prevent the dissemination of harmful content and emphasized that the legal framework aims to empower citizens and safeguard their privacy, contrary to accusations of censorship and government overreach.
