The government has made a new law for Social Media?
No, the new rules and regulations are just add-ons to the previous IT-ACT.
“We have not framed any new law. We have framed these rules under the existing IT Act,” As quoted by MeITY minister Ravi Shankar Prasad during a press conference.
What is a three-tier regulatory regime?
OTT streaming platforms and digital news publishers will be now categorized under a three-tier regulatory regime.
It’ll be similar to the present-day court system, the first complaint will be registered in Tier-1, i.e, the company’s self-appointed grievance officer and later if not satisfied with the solution, the complaint can be registered into Tier-2 and Tier-3 respectively.
What is the originator of information?
The new Social Media rules and regulations make it possible for the government to track down the first originator of information for any irresponsible/fake news by any platforms. It’s being said that it’d help to reduce the damage caused by WhatsApp forwards which have resulted in mob violence in past.
How will the new social media rules affect me?
There is quite a confusion among social media users about how can any of these rules affect them? Well, the only possible way they can have a direct impact on you by the government having the ability to track down the originator of the information.
Apar Gupta, executive director at Internet Freedom Foundation, said in an interview with The News Minute, “There is a reasonable chance that it will break end-to-end encryption and it will lock out platforms that deploy this encryption but do not have sizable resources like WhatsApp or Facebook. For instance, many Indians use Signal and Telegram and these companies will not be able to operate in India in active compliance of these conditions.”
