Government notifies Information Technology (IntermediaryGuidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021

Why In News?

The Ministry for Electronics and IT has notified Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021. The rules have been framed under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and will supersede the 2011 guidelines for internet intermediaries.

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

salient features:

Due Diligence To Be Followed By Intermediaries:

Grievance Redressal Mechanism:

Ensuring Online Safety and Dignity of Users, Specially Women Users:

Two Categories of Social Media Intermediaries:social media intermediaries and significant social media intermediaries.

Additional Due Diligence to Be Followed by Significant Social Media Intermediary:

• Appoint a Chief Compliance Officer who shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with the Act and Rules. Such a person should be a resident in India. 
• Appoint a Nodal Contact Person for 24x7 coordination with law enforcement agencies. Such a person shall be a resident in India. 
• Appoint a Resident Grievance Officer who shall perform the functions mentioned under Grievance Redressal Mechanism. Such a person shall be a resident in India. 
• Publish a monthly compliance report mentioning the details of complaints received and action taken on the complaints as well as details of contents removed proactively by the significant social media intermediary.
• Significant social media intermediaries providing services primarily in the nature of messaging shall enable identification of the first originator of the information that is required only for the purposes of prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution or punishment of an offence related to sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, or public order or of incitement to an offence relating to the above or in relation with rape, sexually explicit material or child sexual abuse material punishable with imprisonment for a term of not less than five years. Intermediary shall not be required to disclose the contents of any message or any other information to the first originator.

Voluntary User Verification Mechanism:

Giving Users An Opportunity to Be Heard:

Removal of Unlawful Information:

The Rules will come in effect from the date of their publication in the gazette, except for the additional due diligence for significant social media intermediaries, which shall come in effect 3 months after publication of these Rules.

Background:

Digital Media Ethics Code Relating to Digital Media and OTT Platforms to Be Administered by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

While all the rules have been framed and notified under the existing Information Technology (IT) Act, the administrative powers for regulation of OTT and digital news sharing platforms shall be under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B).

The new guidelines place more onus on nearly all such companies which provide a platform to host, share, view or modify content, while also including for the first time, entities which are in the business of either creating or distributing news online under the ambit of an online intermediary.

Among the first, the government has made social media intermediaries more liable for the content being shared on their platform by following due diligence, failing which the “safe harbour provisions” will not be applicable to them.

These safe harbour provisions have been defined under Section 79 of the IT Act, and protect social media intermediaries by giving them immunity from legal prosecution for any content posted on their platforms.

A three-level grievance redressal mechanism has been established under the rules with different levels of self-regulation.

• Level-I: Self-regulation by the publishers;
• Level-II: A self-regulatory body, headed either by a retired Supreme Court or High Court judge or an independent eminent person, shall also be formed, which will ensure the compliance of ethics and rules by online digital news platforms.
• Level-III: Oversight mechanism The ministry shall, in due course of time, “formulate an oversight mechanism. It shall publish a charter for self-regulating bodies, including Codes of Practices. It shall establish an Inter-Departmental Committee for hearing grievances”.