Meta has agreed to report child-safety-related matters, including suspected child sexual abuse cases, to law enforcement agencies in India, Indian media reported on Tuesday, citing government sources. According to PTI, a Meta spokesperson said the cases would be sent to the cybercrime portal managed by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre.
Government sources quoted by ANI described the agreement as a first step toward making online platforms safer for children, while saying that more action was needed. PTI and ANI reported that Indian authorities were also engaging with other online platforms to encourage the proactive identification and removal of abusive content.
The sources said the government could act against platforms that fail to take proactive measures on online child safety. They described child safety as a fundamental and non-negotiable principle for social media companies operating in India.
The agreement follows growing scrutiny of Meta in the country. The BBC reported in July that Instagram had carried paid advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material in India. India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology subsequently ordered Instagram to disable advertisements and content promoting or facilitating access to such material, and sought a detailed explanation from the company.
The ministry also held several discussions with senior Meta executives, while the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights summoned Meta India’s managing director and head of the company’s Indian operations as part of an inquiry into alleged advertisements involving child sexual exploitation and abuse material.
A report by the US-based Tech Transparency Project said it had identified more than 300 advertisements containing such material that appeared on Facebook and Instagram this year. The report said 84 of those advertisements ran in India, including 78 after the government had directed Meta to remove Instagram advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material. The supplied reports did not specify when Meta’s new reporting arrangement would take effect or how cases would be processed by authorities.