Mark Zuckerberg apologises to PM Modi

New Delhi: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has apologised over the presence of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), deepfake content and operational errors on the company’s platforms, according to sources familiar with the proceedings of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology. The apology was made while representatives of Meta met with the parliamentary panel.

Sources say the committee told Meta that it can’t be considered a mere conduit to users if it is at least “active in the determination of the content’s distribution to the users. The panel said such acts may lead to the safe harbour provisions under Information Technology Act to become inapplicable.

Panel questions Meta’s role in content distribution

The committee reportedly said at the meeting that Meta decides what content to show to its users recommender systems. This is different from the role of a neutral intermediary according to Indian law, it said.

Sources say that the Meta team recognized the concerns of the panel. They also confirmed that substantial sums of money have been invested in promoting specific types of content on the platform.

Meta expresses regret over platform errors

The sources also said that Meta apologised for its role in the distribution of CSAM, synthetic content and other “platform-related errors. The company also apologised for the missteps and said it will take corrective measures.

These developments follow growing concerns regarding the content curation and overall safety of social media users, as well as adherence to India’s digital legislation, among the big social media platforms. As the parliamentary panel is deliberating on the duty of big techs and their liabilities under the Information Technology Act.