Following the proliferation of recent instances of deepfake content on various social media platforms, a meeting was convened by Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, with key industry stakeholders. The purpose of this meeting was to deliberate on the formulation of legislation that particularly address the issue of such online content.
In addition to representatives from social media platforms, Nasscom, as well as professors specializing in artificial intelligence (AI) and platforms where AI-generated material is produced, were in attendance at the minister’s urgent meeting.
According to Vaisnaw, efforts have been initiated to address the issue of deepfake content on internet platforms, either by the implementation of new regulations or by incorporating measures into current ones.
The establishment of regulations will be based on four pillars. The aforementioned items encompass:
The identification and recognition of deepfakes
Strategies for Preemptively Mitigating the Viral Spread of Content
Enhancing the reporting process
The level of consciousness among individuals
The consensus among meeting attendees and government officials was that deepfake films cannot be classified as protected speech under the concept of freedom of expression. Given the potential for significant harm, it is imperative to implement stringent restrictions or measures.
According to Vaishnaw, the initiation of the regulatory draft’s development has commenced today. Following a period of 10 days, a subsequent meeting will be held with the relevant industry players to discuss the advancement of the document.
According to the minister’s statement to News18, it was mentioned at the meeting that all the companies have collectively agreed to implement internal measures in relation to their policies.
According to a MeitY official, talks pertaining to the utilization of deepfakes and artificial intelligence (AI) will be presented and deliberated upon during the forthcoming Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) summit, which will involve participation from international leaders.
One of the proposed measures that emerged from the discourse involved the implementation of watermarking on AI-generated content, or the establishment of a labelling system. Nevertheless, the government possesses knowledge regarding certain methodologies that can be employed to eliminate those blemishes.
However, the matter remains a subject of ongoing discourse, and government officials have indicated that they will assess the extent of advancements made in terms of legislation within the upcoming 10-day period. According to Vaishnaw, after the completion of the draft, it would undergo a period of public consultation.
