New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notice to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by senior journalist Rajat Sharma against non-regulation of deepfake technology in the country.
A division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora sought a response from the Union Government through the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and asked the Central Government if it is willing to act on the issue.
In his PIL, journalist Rajat Sharma, who is the Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Independent News Service Private Limited (INDIA TV) said the proliferation of deepfake technology poses significant threats to various aspects of society, including misinformation and disinformation campaigns.
Deepfake undermines the integrity of public discourse and democratic processes, potential use in fraud and identity theft as well as harm to individuals' reputations and privacy.
“All these threats are compounded when a deepfake is made of an influential person such as a politician, sportsman, actor, or any other public figure capable of influencing public opinion,” the petitioner said and added, "The threat increases more in the case of a person who is visible on television daily and on whose statements the public has come to place faith in."
Rajat Sharma said there is a pressing need for strict enforcement and proactive action to mitigate the potential harms associated with their misuse.
The absence of adequate regulation and safeguards against the misuse of deepfake technology poses a grave risk to the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of India, including the right to freedom of expression, the right to privacy, and the right to a fair trial.
The Petitioner has asked the court to intervene and issue directions to the Union Government to identify and block public access to the applications, software, platforms and websites enabling the creation of deepfakes.
The Petitioner also sought the Government to issue a directive to all social media intermediaries to take immediate action to take down deepfakes upon the receipt of a complaint from the person concerned.
The petitioner also sought that the government should ensure that the platforms, and websites enabling the creation of deepfakes disclose that the content has been generated by AI either by watermark or some other effective methodology.
The PIL also seeks the issuance of guidelines to ensure that any access to Artificial Intelligence and deepfakes is carried out strictly under the Fundamental Rights guaranteed in Part III of the Constitution till relevant Rules are framed by the Centre.
A further direction is sought to appoint a dedicated nodal officer for receiving complaints regarding deep fakes and acting upon a complaint within 12 hours and 06 hours in the case of a complaint received regarding content featuring a public figure, the petitioner contended.
UNI SNG KK