Meta sued in the US for child exploitation; 'days of free pass are over'- Rajeev Chandrasekhar

On Tuesday, more than 30 US states filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms over accusations of using features on Instagram and Facebook to lure children to these platforms and hook them on harmful content. Closely following this, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar reacted and said that social media platforms must be more responsible for the content circulating there. He also highlighted that these platforms must ensure that they do not cause harm to Indian citizens.

In an interview with NDTV, the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology stated, "It is important for (social media) platforms to be much more accountable and responsible for what they do, what content they host, and who they allow on their platform to host such content". He added, "I think the days of free pass and immunity to (these) platforms are over".

Rajeev Chandrasekhar Addresses Meta Demand Issue

Meta's lawsuit has been filed in the Northern District of California District Court, and the case will now evaluate whether it violated consumer protection laws by unfairly endangering children and misleading users about the standard security on platforms.

"PM Narendra Modi ji, two years ago, laid out the basic principles in terms of how do we need to look at the internet, how we need to look at tech in general…Certainly, it is clear now that there are harms also prevalent on the internet. There are issues of addiction, user harm, and exploitation…We have taken the view that safety, (accountability), and trust for our digital nagriks is a policy priority," said Chandrasekhar on how India is ensuring that social media platforms do not have a similar impact on the children.

On the question of whether a tightening of rope is required for social media platforms, the IT Minister said, "I think it is absolutely necessary that as we move forward and more Indians come online…it is important for the platforms and the government to work in a non-adversarial way in a partnership to ensure that the platforms must not have child sexual abuse material and misinformation".

A Meta spokesperson has expressed disappointment over US policymakers taking this route, highlighting Meta has "already introduced over 30 tools to support teens and their families" and shares a similar commitment as the attorney general to "providing teens with safe, positive experiences online".