Meta says it has a zero tolerance policy for Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), including in advertisements, after the Centre directed the company to remove Instagram ads and content promoting or facilitating access to such material and sought an explanation within seven days.
The response comes after the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued a notice to Meta over reports that paid advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material had appeared on Instagram.
The ministry has directed the company to immediately disable all such advertisements and content on the platform, while seeking details on how they were approved, the safeguards in place to prevent such content, and the corrective measures being taken to avoid similar incidents.
Responding to the development, a Meta spokesperson said, “Meta has a zero tolerance policy for soliciting or sharing CSAM, including in ads. We use advanced AI technology to proactively detect violating content and individuals, but we are in a constant battle with criminals who hide among our 3.5 billion users and try to evade our detection. That is why our expert teams are constantly working to improve our defenses, develop new technology to root out predators, block links to violating websites, and share intelligence with other companies so they can take action too.”
The government action follows a BBC Eye investigation published on July 3, which alleged that Instagram had carried paid advertisements in India promoting child sexual abuse material. According to the investigation, the advertisements contained explicit search terms and redirected users to Telegram channels where the illegal content was allegedly being offered for as little as Rs 99. The report also alleged that some of the advertisements had been approved by Instagram’s automated moderation systems.
According to sources, MeitY has sought a detailed explanation from Meta within seven days on the approval process for the advertisements, the company’s existing detection and moderation mechanisms, and the steps being taken to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Earlier this week, the Centre also issued notices to Meta-owned WhatsApp, along with Telegram and Signal, seeking details on their username features and the safeguards adopted to prevent fraud, impersonation and misuse of their platforms.
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