Govt Warns Meta Over AI-Misuse: What MeitY Secretary Told DD News
A high-level global delegation from Meta, including Chief Global Affairs Officer Joel Kaplan, met with Union IT and I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in New Delhi. The visit followed a government summons and parliamentary scrutiny over the brief, inadvertent removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s video from Facebook.
In a sharp message delivered on DD News' Cyber Alert, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has warned Meta of strict action for repeated serious violations linked to AI-generated misinformation and platform misuse, citing the Telegram blocking precedent and expanded powers under the IT Act.
What happened?
During the interview, Secretary S. Krishnan said the government has given a clear warning to Meta - compliance cannot be optional.
If platforms fail to act on unlawful AI content, bot-driven misinformation and CSAM-related lapses, the Centre will invoke blocking powers, court directions and police action.
The warning comes amid a cluster of MeitY actions in 2026:
- Summoning Meta over Instagram ads promoting child sexual abuse material
- Flagging WhatsApp's proposed username rollout as a material risk for fraud, phishing, digital arrest and impersonation
- Reviewing Meta's new Muse Image AI tool for legal compliance
"The Centre is ready to examine whether Meta's newly launched AI-powered image generation and editing feature, Muse Image, complies with India's legal framework if it receives a complaint," Krishnan said on July 9
In March, MeitY had already convened Google, Meta, OpenAI, Snap and others over bot-driven misinformation and deepfakes in a meeting chaired by Secretary Krishnan
The legal backbone: Section 69A and 2026 Rules
The interview specifically cited Section 69A of the IT Act, 2000, which authorizes the Central Government to block public access to any online information to protect national sovereignty, security and public order.
Two recent changes make the warning more consequential:
- 3-hour takedown + AI labelling: In February 2026, the Centre tightened rules mandating takedown of unlawful content within three hours and requiring clear labelling of all AI-generated and synthetic content.
- Entire platform can be blocked: The Delhi High Court has ruled that "The blocking power under Section 69A of the IT Act extends beyond individual pieces of content," upholding the Centre's emergency order blocking Telegram until June 22 amid paper leak concerns. The court held the platform itself can be restricted under Section 69A.
MeitY is now also considering authorising more ministries - Home, Defence, External Affairs, I&B - to issue blocking orders under Section 69A, where earlier only MeitY issued final directions after review.
Why Meta is in focus
Secretary Krishnan drew a clear line between Section 69A and Section 79. As summarised in The Hindu, he explained that Section 69A empowers the Government in its executive capacity to block content that threatens national security or public order, while Section 79 puts intermediaries on notice about their obligations and potential liability.
For Meta, three risk areas were flagged in the DD News discussion:
- AI misinformation at scale: AI-generated videos impersonating public figures, fake news and synthetic media that evade detection.
- Design features that enable crime: The WhatsApp username feature was flagged for providing "encouragement" or facility for cybercrimes.
- Failure of safe harbour: Under the Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code Amendment Rules, 2026, failure to meet 3-hour takedown timelines risks loss of safe harbour and potential criminal liability.
The Telegram precedent
The government is using Telegram as a case study. After MeitY issued an emergency order under Section 69A, the Delhi High Court upheld that an entire intermediary can be blocked, not just individual URLs. The Cyber Alert anchor used this to underline that Meta's Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp would face the same legal test if violations are repeated.
What's next?
MeitY has said it will await Meta's response on the CSAM and username issues before deciding further action, and that any other app found similarly misused would also be blocked.
With a new AI law under discussion as evolving tech raises fresh concerns over deepfakes and cyber threats, the message from Krishi Bhavan is clear: AI tools will be examined under the existing legal framework, and platforms must demonstrate compliance, not just explain glitches.
For users, the advisory remains: verify AI content on official PIB / Ministry handles, and report AI-generated fraud at 1930 or cybercrime.gov.in.