Social Media and its Implication
By - Karan Gautam
Introduction
Nowadays, social media is present in many facets of
our lives. The number of people using social media platforms has significantly
increased with their growth. Social media is widely utilized in India for
networking, information sharing, and communication. However, the popularity of
social media has also given rise to fresh issues about privacy, security, and
online safety. The Indian government has introduced several social
media-related legislation and regulations to solve these issues.
The Information Technology Act's Section 79
Social media sites and other intermediaries are
legally shielded from liability for user-generated information under Section
79 of the Information Technology Act (ITA).
To hold social media platforms more responsible for
the content that is uploaded on them, the Indian government revised this clause
in 2018.
By the revised clause, social media sites must remove
any content that is deemed illegal within 24 hours of receiving a complaint.
This has been done to stop the spread of false information and hate speech on
social media.
IndianPenal Code
The Indian Penal Code (IPC) is regarded as the
country's official criminal code and aims to handle all significant facets of
criminal law. Anyone found guilty of a crime involving property, a person's
body, a conspiracy, or social media is subject to the IPC's punishments. The
IPC, 1860 has several sections that address offences involving social media.
The following provides examples of some of the Sections mentioned for the same:
·
Section
124A: This section primarily
addresses sedition, a crime that incites the opposition to overthrow the
government.
·
Section
153A: The goal of this section is
to punish those who disparage a particular faith or group based on their race,
language, place of birth, or religion.
·
Section
295A: The primary goal of this
section is to penalize individuals who purposefully disparage religion or
religious beliefs.
·
Section
499: It largely deals with cases of defamation, in which a
person was subject to legal repercussions for uttering a defamatory statement,
either orally or in writing, with the intent to harm another person's
reputation.
·
Section
505: According to this section of the IPC, anyone who
makes comments that encourage public displeasure is subject to prosecution.
·
According to Section
506, anyone who makes an effort to intimidate another person—either
physically or via the use of technology—commits a crime that carries a sentence
of many years in jail, a fine, or both.
·
Section
509: Covers the offense of violating a woman's modesty and
the associated penalties
The new guidelines for social media middlemen
New guidelines for social media intermediaries were
released by the Indian government in February 2021.
·
According to
these regulations, social media sites must designate a grievance officer to
handle complaints about illegal content.
·
The regulations
call for social media sites to build up a system for confirming the legitimacy
of its users.
·
Additionally,
social media networks must have a way to get rid of anything that is deemed
illegal.
·
By the new
regulations, social media sites must also provide information about the source
of any remarks that are regarded to be illegal.
Impacts of Recent Social Media Laws
The new social media intermediary regulations have a
big impact on Indian businesses that use social media. According to the
regulations, social media sites must abide by Indian laws concerning online
material, which may not be the same as those in other nations. If social media
platforms disregard the new regulations, they risk legal repercussions as well.
Some social media businesses and civil rights organizations have criticized the
new regulations for being overbroad and ambiguous. Concerns about the
restrictions' effects on free speech and privacy have also been voiced by
others.
The current Twitter squabble
Twitter became embroiled in a dispute with the Indian
government in February 2021 over the country's new social media laws and
regulations. About the ongoing farmers' protest in India, the Indian government
had requested Twitter to remove several posts. The government's request was
initially rejected by Twitter, which claimed that the posts did not break any
of its rules. However, Twitter was accused of breaking Indian law by the Indian
government, and legal action was threatened. The messages were eventually
deleted by Twitter after it responded to the government's request.
The scandal spurred a discussion about social media
corporations' responsibilities for online content writing service regulation.
Social media businesses should be more open about their content policies, some
people have claimed, while others disagree.
Conclusion
The growth of social media has created new issues regarding
privacy, safety, and security online. The Indian government has introduced several
social media-related legislation and regulations to solve these issues. The new
guidelines for social media intermediaries have a big impact on India's social
media legislation and rights for influencers and businesses. While some have criticized
the regulations as being overly broad and ambiguous, others contend that they
are essential to ensure that social media companies abide by Indian laws about
online material. The latest Twitter saga has brought to light the need for a
deeper comprehension of the function that social media platforms play in
policing online discourse. To achieve a healthy balance between preserving free
speech and preventing harmful or violent online content.
