Meta announced on Tuesday that it will begin reporting child safety cases directly to Indian cybercrime authorities as part of efforts to strengthen action against online child exploitation.
“Protecting children on our platforms is a priority for us, and we’re committed to working with the government to ensure that the perpetrators of these crimes are held responsible,” state-run Doordarshan Radio quoted a Meta spokesperson as saying.
The company said reports involving child safety would now be submitted directly to the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre’s Cybercrime portal.
“To collectively strengthen our efforts to combat this harm, Meta will now report child safety matters directly to the Cybercrime portal managed by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Center,” the spokesperson said.
The move comes amid increased scrutiny in India over the responsibility of digital platforms to prevent harmful and illegal content, particularly material involving children.
In July, a BBC Eye investigation reported that paid advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material had appeared on Meta-owned Instagram in India. Following the report, the Indian government ordered Meta to remove advertisements and other content promoting such material from its platforms.
Meta, which operates Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said its latest measure is intended to improve coordination with Indian authorities investigating child safety and online crimes.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights last week summoned Meta India’s managing director and country head as part of an inquiry into allegations concerning advertisements linked to child sexual abuse material.
Separately, India’s National Human Rights Commission had earlier directed New Delhi police to conduct a comprehensive investigation into allegations that paid Instagram advertisements had been used to promote such material.