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Recently there was a news that Social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook might face a ban. Explain the developments behind it…….

Recently there was a news that Social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook might face a ban. Explain the developments behind it. Comment on the on-going issue with suitable justifications.

Introduction:

Social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook have already taken an irreplaceable spot in the life of people. Other than providing legitimate information they are also disseminating wrong information, clickbait news and many other socially harmful things. To curb these practices Govt of India had proposed few guidelines on Feb 25. These had to be implemented within May 25.

Body:

The new IT regulations includes following guidelines:

Government has asked these companies to remove the contents which is flagged by the authorities. This is a major glitch in the new regulation. Although in countries like Singapore, similar law has already been implemented companies are raising concern over these laws in India. Therefore, these companies have not yet agreed to these laws. The government has also not shown a lot of interest amidst the ongoing pandemic.

Appointing a compliance officer is not at all a big issue for the companies. But, the data privacy might be compromised if these laws are implemented strictly and government can access any user data. This can be misused easily in countries like India where bureaucracy takes a major role in every aspect. Misuse by ruling parties can also be cited as a reason to oppose such moves.

Even if a common end user might experience a major problem, the audit of companies and the data possessed by them will open opportunities for governments to overpower them. On the other hand, this rule is implemented for platforms having more than a prescribed user base. So small platforms can also escape this rule and continue indulging in foul play. Because misinformation spreads through smaller platforms also. There are live video streaming apps which produce a large amount of such contents.

Conclusion:

The government of India is focusing to curb the spread of misinformation by implementing these laws. Most probably a middle ground will be achieved in this matter since lot of these companies have a huge market in India. Flagging the content itself is a vested interest. Therefore, this law might not be implemented in its full nature and will be diluted as days pass on. The companies have also resorted to wait and watch as well as moving to courts to oppose these regulations