Govt orders Meta to remove Instagram ads promoting child sexual abuse, seeks explanation in 7 days: Sources

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has issued a notice to Meta directing the company to immediately disable all advertisements and content on Instagram that promote or facilitate access to Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM). The notice, issued on Saturday evening, also seeks an explanation from Meta within seven days on how such content was approved and displayed on the platform.The latest action comes after Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw directed ministry officials to summon Meta executives following reports that paid advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material had appeared on Instagram in India.According to sources, the government has sought details on how the advertisements were approved, the safeguards currently in place to detect and prevent such content, and the corrective measures being taken to ensure similar incidents do not recur. The scrutiny follows an investigation published by BBC Eye on July 3, which alleged that Instagram had carried paid advertisements in India promoting child sexual abuse material. According to the investigation, the advertisements included explicit search terms and redirected users to Telegram channels where the illegal content was allegedly being sold for as little as Rs 99. It also reported that some of the advertisements had been cleared by Instagram's automated moderation systems.Earlier this week, the government issued notices to Meta-owned WhatsApp, as well as Telegram and Signal, seeking details on their username features and the safeguards in place to prevent fraud, impersonation and misuse. Officials are also examining WhatsApp's proposed restrictions on usernames, verification measures and reporting mechanisms.