WhatsApp Directed by Government to Come Up With Effective Fake News Curbs: Ahir

In the wake of spread of fake news, the Centre has directed the messaging platform WhatsApp to come out with effective solutions that can bring in accountability and facilitate enforcement of law against dissemination of wrong information.

Union Minister of State for Home Hansraj Ahir said in Lok Sabha that the government has taken note of reports about spread of fake news, misinformation or disinformation on Internet, particularly using WhatsApp platform.

"Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology issued notices to WhatsApp conveying that they need to come out with effective solutions that can bring in accountability and facilitate enforcement of law in addition to labelling forwards and weeding out fake news," he said in written reply to a question.

Ahir said WhatsApp has conveyed that a number of steps have been taken by it to address the issue of fake news propagated using the platform. "Meetings with law enforcement agencies and intermediaries are held on regular basis to strengthen the coordination framework for better enforcement of the law," he said.

In more WhatsApp India news, earlier this month, the Supreme Court asked RBI to respond to an application looking to implead it as a party in a matter seeking directive to US-based WhatsApp to comply with data localisation norms for providing payment service in India. A bench of Justices RF Nariman and Vineet Saran issued notice to the RBI on an impleadment application by NGO, Centre for Accountability and Systemic Change (CASC), which has filed a petition in the court claiming that WhatsApp has not fully complied with the central bank's circular which prescribed data localisation norms.