DPDP rules to be out by January-end, says MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar

They will help curb deepfakes posted on social media platforms

Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar, on Tuesday said that rules for the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act are expected to be out by the month-end.

This follows a month-long consultation process but the notification of these rules may be out only after the general elections in April-May. 

“DPDP rules will be put out for consultation soon sometime this month. The consultation will be about a month’s time. Since the elections are coming up, I cannot say whether it will be notified before the elections,” said the Minister.

Speaking at a press conference on the occasion of National Startup Day, Chandrasekhar said the government is bringing in new amendments to the existing IT rules within the next seven-eight days. These will curb deepfakes over social media platforms. He added that these rules are coming after the government noticed a mixed response from platforms on the advisory around deepfakes.

He said the platforms have already been made aware of the existing provisions of IT rules and the consequences of non-compliance, during the Digital India Dialogues held last month. 

“We have issued an advisory and also said that if we are not satisfied with the compliance, we will notify the newly-amended rules. They are much more specific to the issue of misinformation, and deepfakes in particular. We are going to issue new amended IT rules in the next 7-8 days,” he added. 

Recently, Sachin Tendulkar had flagged his deepfake on X where he is seen promoting a gaming application. He expressed concerns about the misuse of technology.

“It is disturbing to see rampant misuse of technology. Request everyone to report videos, ads & apps like these in large numbers,” said Tendulkar in a post on X.

“Social media platforms need to be alert and responsive to complaints. Swift action from their end is crucial to stopping the spread of misinformation and deepfakes,” he added 

In December, the ministry held meetings with Internet platforms as part of “digital india dialogues” to discuss issues such as deepfakes and misinformation. The companies were asked to exercise due diligence in promptly removing such content from their platforms.

Through the proposed changes under IT rules, the government is planning to prescribe amendments to the ‘terms of use’ of the platforms. 

The minister also said that the government may go to the extent of blocking a platform if it fails to regulate and take action against deepfakes, in the interest of Indian citizens.