Ads for banned products up 24% in FY25; offshore betting dominates: ASCI

ASCI flagged a 23.6% jump in ads for prohibited products in FY25, with offshore betting and influencer content contributing to most violations across sectors

The number of advertisements (ads) for products or services prohibited by law has increased by 23.6 per cent to 3,347 in 2024-25, and a large chunk of the ads was from offshore, illegal betting platforms, according to the Annual Complaints Report released by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). Ads for products or services prohibited by law stood at 2,707 in the 2023-24 period.

 

Out of these 3,347 ads, 3,081 were from offshore, illegal betting platforms. These 3,081 ads included 318 that pertained to influencers promoting such platforms. On the other hand, 233 ads potentially violated the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act; 21 promoted alcohol brands; and 12 ads promoted unauthorised forex trading apps banned by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

   

ASCI has been escalating these ads that are prohibited by law to regulators for appropriate action, it said in its report.

 

With this, offshore betting and realty sectors emerge as the most violative ones as ads in these segments flagged by consumers rose to 83 per cent in the 2024-25 period. Overall, ASCI looked into 9,599 complaints and scrutinised 7,199 as. In this, 98 per cent of scrutinised ads required some form of modification. The offshore betting segment contributed 43 per cent of cases while the realty sector accounted for 24.9 per cent of cases, ASCI said in a release. 

 

“This year has been one of meaningful collaborations as we expanded our efforts to address critical areas like offshore betting or gambling and real estate violations, which are high-impact violations,” said Manisha Kapoor, chief executive officer (CEO) and secretary general of ASCI, in a statement.

 

The realty sector was followed by ads in the personal-care segment, contributing 5.7 per cent of cases, healthcare at 5.23 per cent, and food and beverage segment accounting for 4.69 per cent of the cases. Additionally, influencer violations contributed to 14 per cent of the ads processed, the report added.

 

“The rise in public complaints — and more importantly, how many advertisers chose to quietly comply — says a lot about where trust still lives,” said Partha Sinha, chairman, ASCI.

 

Out of the 1,015 influencer ads investigated by ASCI, the ones in the illegal betting segment were highest at 31.4 per cent, followed by fashion and lifestyle at 16.2 per cent.

 

“ASCI’s continued efforts have resulted in 83 per cent overall compliance, with TV and print showing near-perfect adherence (of ads) at 98 per cent,” the release said.