Deepfake technology has been around for a while, but the issue exploded recently and caught the government’s attention when a fake video of Bollywood actor Rashmika Mandana went viral. In response, not only have several prominent actors called for legal remedies to combat this pervasive technology, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, has emphasised the urgent need to battle deepfakes. As a result, the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) has swung into action and held meetings with relevant industry stakeholders to regulate this pervasive technology.
MeitY’s action plan in next 10 days
To begin with, Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw held a meeting with representatives from all major social media platforms, leading companies in AI tools, and notable professors in the field of AI. The agenda of the meeting was to address the issue of deepfake technology and formulate a plan of action to counter it. As a result of the discussions, India is set to unveil a clear and actionable plan within the next 10 days, focusing on four key pillars. The discussions also focused on labelling and watermarking.
The four pillars are detection of deepfakes and misinformation, prevention of the spread of identified deepfakes and misinformation, fortifying the grievance and reporting mechanism, and raising awareness. Vaishnaw has assured that the government will finalise and implement this comprehensive plan within the next 10 days.
Drafting regulation
MeitY, in collaboration with stakeholders, has recognised the pressing need for more substantial regulation on deepfakes. Vaishnaw stated, “We agreed that we will start drafting the regulation today. And within a very short timeframe, we will have a new set of regulation for deepfakes.” The government is currently in the early stages of discussions and is exploring options such as introducing new rules, enacting a new law, or amending existing regulations. Once the ministry formulates the regulations, it will undergo a period of public consultation.”
In response to a query from Business Today about whether the government is planning to develop in-house tools to identify and detect deepfakes, the minister acknowledged it as a valuable suggestion for the team to look at.
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The ministry plans to hold the next meeting in the first week of December to further discuss the points to be included in the draft regulation.
