Representational image (IANS)
New Delhi: After Google and Meta agreed to report cases of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) directly to Indian law enforcement agencies, child rights experts on Wednesday asserted that safety by design must be a mandatory and non-negotiable principle, not an exception introduced only when companies are held accountable.
They emphasised on making digital spaces safer for children and stated that safety cannot be an optional feature added after an incident. Both the tech giants have agreed to report cases of CSAM to the concerned authorities after the government took up the matter with them.
Earlier, in July, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), under the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development took note of alleged CSAM circulating on Instagram, and had summoned its top brass over the matter. In the same month, the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had taken note of it. It then directed the Instagram to pull down all advertisements and content which foster or facilitate acces to CSAM.
Experts’ views
Child rights expert Miguel Das said whether a company is headquartered in New Delhi or California, reporting child sexual abuse should be an integral part of its systems and policies from day one. Das, the founder of Utsah Child Rights Organisation, working for the rights of the children said technology giants cannot treat child safety as an afterthought.
“Safety by design must be a mandatory. It is non-negotiable. Every child has the right to be safe, both online and offline, and ensuring their safety must be a fundamental responsibility of every digital platform,” he told ETV Bharat.
Another child rights expert, Rachna Tyagi told ETV Bharat, “Both tech giants agreed to report CSAM cases. Meta has also indicated that it will vet such content itself. This marks a shift. Meta can no longer be merely seen as a ‘simple intermediary’ and must be treated as a service provider with greater responsibility for what features on its platform.”
Citing a Supreme Court ruling, Tyagi claimed that the apex court has made it clear that safe harbour protects responsible intermediaries; it cannot become a shield for non-compliance. Yet so far, only Meta and Google have taken the step, although the court’s directions apply to all digital platforms, all intermediaries, not only to social media.
Stating that for children, safety cannot be an optional feature added after an incident, she said safety must be an architectural requirement because if a risk is foreseeable, designing for that risk is not only the best practice, it is responsible conduct.
Tyagi, who is also the General Counsel, Just Rights for Children said, “The question is no longer whether the digital world will shape childhood. It is already is doing that. The question is whether our laws and institutions will shape digital platforms strongly enough to protect childhood. This is because detection without enforcement is only documentation, consent without legal capacity is only a checkbox, safety without enforceability is only a promise, and AI without accountability is only automation of risk.”
She said children should not have to wait for technology to become safer before the law becomes protective. Meanwhile, cyber expert, Vineet Kumar welcomed the decision taken by the two tech giant, and stated it would ensure child safety. He said focus should be on building institutional capacity.
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