Meta’s global team to meet MeitY officials on Aug 5-6 amid scrutiny over CSAM, AI content and platform compliance

Meta’s global team executives will meet Indian government officials on August 5 and 6 to discuss a range of platform-related concerns, including the handling of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), AI-generated content, user account restrictions and compliance with Indian regulations, IT Secretary S. Krishnan said on Tuesday.

The meetings come at a time when major social media platforms are facing increased scrutiny in India over user safety, content moderation, grievance redressal and adherence to regulatory requirements.

Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of Voice of India, an independent multimodal artificial intelligence (AI) evaluation platform developed jointly by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras-backed AI4Bharat and Josh Talks AI, Krishnan said the government now has greater clarity on how platforms are expected to comply with Indian laws.

“There is a clearer understanding of what India’s law is on these issues. Clearer understanding of what compliance should look like, and clearer understanding of how they intend to sort of make sure that the compliance happens. There are a range of issues. Sometimes, you know, we are aware that, you know, the CSAM issue was raised, and what measures have been taken regarding that. Synthetic, re-generated information, to what extent that is being looked at. Then, of course, for prominent personalities, when they have verified accounts, if content gets taken down, there have to be, taken down, there have to be safeguards,” he said.

The discussions are expected to cover Meta’s approach to tackling CSAM, the moderation of synthetic and AI-generated content, safeguards for verified accounts, platform governance, compliance with Indian regulations and grievance redressal mechanisms.

When asked whether legal action needs to be taken against Meta, Krishnan said the ministry had already initiated legal proceedings through notices issued to the company. “I can’t speak for anything which transpired in the Parliamentary Standing Committee. As far as the IT Ministry is concerned, we have already issued our notices and that is a legal step. I think there is a legal action process which is ongoing,” he said.

Meta has been under increasing scrutiny from the Indian government over multiple issues in recent months. The tensions began with concerns over WhatsApp’s planned username feature, followed by notices seeking an explanation over reports of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) circulating through Instagram, and most recently after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s video message was temporarily restricted on Facebook before being restored. The latest meeting with Meta’s global executives comes against the backdrop of these developments and the government’s broader push for greater accountability from digital platforms.