By Prarthana Mitra
In accordance with the latest directives issued by the government, WhatsApp might have to set up a local entity to determine the origin of fake, incendiary and doctored messages. IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that these sinister developments need to be dealt with the utmost expediency and urgency, and laid down a few guidelines for the app to trace where such messages are originating.
The concerned authorities had already sent two notices to the Facebook-owned app, urging it to step up all preventive and precautionary measures. Now the centre has directed WhatsApp to join in the ongoing search for the perpetrators, who are spreading false reports to incite mob violence and lynchings around the country. In a stern message, the centre has asked the messaging platform to find a tech solution to the menace of mobocracy which has already claimed scores of lives.
I had a productive meeting with Chris Daniels, the CEO of WhatsApp. I complimented him for the awakening, which WhatsApp has led in the entire country… But there are also sinister developments like mob lynching and revenge porn, you must find solutions to these challenges, which are downright criminal and violation of Indian laws, Prasad said, warning the company of severe consequences if it fails to take action.
… I flagged in particular, which I had said earlier also, it does not take rocket science to locate a message being circulated in hundreds and thousands… you must have a mechanism to find a solution, he added. Daniels is currently in India for discussions with government and business officials over the next few days.
WhatsApp must now set up a corporate entity and appoint a grievance officer to trace the origin of inflammatory messages and fake news being disseminated over its platform. The app has already rolled out several features like labelling such messages as “forwarded“, and is currently developing another to flag fake news.
Prarthana Mitra is a staff writer at Qrius