The Indian government has announced proposed amendments to the IT Rules, 2021, aimed at addressing the increasing threat posed by AI-generated deepfakes and synthetic media.
On Wednesday, officials in New Delhi revealed that the draft legislation mandates clear labeling of AI-generated content, enhancing accountability for major social media platforms such as Facebook and YouTube in verifying and flagging synthetic information. This initiative seeks to protect users from potential harm caused by deepfakes and misinformation.
The IT Ministry highlighted the risks associated with viral deepfake audio and video, emphasizing that generative AI can produce “convincing falsehoods.” Such content has the potential to be “weaponized” for various malicious purposes, including spreading misinformation, damaging reputations, manipulating elections, and committing financial fraud.
The proposed changes will provide a legal framework for labeling and tracing synthetically-generated information. The draft, which is open for stakeholder feedback until November 6, 2025, includes a clear definition of synthetically-generated content and mandates that it be distinguished from authentic media.
Under the new rules, significant social media intermediaries—those with over 5 million registered users—will face stricter obligations to verify and flag synthetic content using reasonable technical measures. Platforms must prominently display labels for AI-generated content, covering at least 10 percent of the visual display or the initial 10 percent of an audio clip”s duration.
Furthermore, these platforms are required to obtain user declarations regarding whether uploaded content is synthetically generated and to take necessary actions to verify these declarations. They must also ensure that AI-generated content is clearly labeled or accompanied by an appropriate notice. The draft rules prohibit intermediaries from altering or removing these labels or identifiers.
According to IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, there have been significant calls in Parliament and various forums for action against deepfakes, which have detrimental effects on privacy and personal lives. He stressed the importance of helping users discern between synthetic and authentic content, stating, “It is important that users know what they are seeing.”
If these rules are adopted, failure to comply could result in the loss of the safe harbor protections currently enjoyed by large platforms. The IT Ministry noted that with the rise of generative AI tools, the potential for misuse, including spreading misinformation and impersonation, has escalated.
The proposed amendments introduce a definition for synthetically generated content, describing it as information that is artificially or algorithmically created, modified, or altered in a way that appears convincingly authentic.
Globally, there is growing concern among policymakers about the prevalence of fabricated or synthetic images, videos, and audio clips, often used to mislead the public or commit fraud. This latest initiative is particularly significant as India ranks among the largest markets for social media platforms, including Meta.
A senior Meta official reported last year that India has become the largest user base for Meta”s AI services. Recently, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman noted that India could soon become the company”s largest market overall.
When questioned about whether the revised rules would apply to content generated on OpenAI“s platforms, sources indicated that obligations would activate only when videos are posted for public dissemination. The responsibility would then fall on intermediaries displaying the media and on users hosting it on their platforms.
Regarding AI content on messaging platforms like WhatsApp, sources mentioned that once any issues are identified, platforms will need to take action to prevent the content from going viral.
India has recently seen a significant increase in AI-generated deepfakes, leading to judicial interventions. Noteworthy incidents include misleading advertisements portraying the fake arrest of a prominent figure, which the Delhi High Court instructed Google to remove. Additionally, earlier this month, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan filed a lawsuit against YouTube and Google, seeking damages over alleged AI deepfake videos.
