A new reporting arrangement between Meta and Indian authorities will give law enforcement a direct channel for child safety cases. The company has agreed to report such matters directly to the cybercrime portal operated by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C).
“Protecting children on our platforms is a priority for the company,” a Meta spokesperson said, adding that the company was committed to working with the government to ensure perpetrators were held responsible.
“To collectively strengthen our efforts to combat this harm, Meta will now report child safety matters directly to the cybercrime portal managed by I4C,” the spokesperson said.
Meta is the first major technology intermediary to commit to a direct reporting channel with Indian law enforcement for these cases. Until now, it has primarily reported child safety incidents to the US-based National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
The move comes as the Indian government increases scrutiny of social media platforms over child sexual abuse material (CSAM), deepfakes and other harmful online content.
Government sources said online child safety is a “fundamental principle” for every social media platform operating in India and is “non-negotiable”. They added that action would be taken against platforms that fail to take proactive measures to protect children.
In July, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued a notice to Meta over alleged Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM) appearing in paid Instagram advertisements.
The action followed an investigation that alleged Instagram carried paid advertisements promoting CSAM. Some advertisements reportedly directed users to Telegram channels hosting sexually explicit material involving children. The investigation also alleged that Meta’s recommendation systems amplified videos containing such material.
Earlier this month, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) summoned Meta India executives over the issue.
The I4C, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, operates the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, which focuses particularly on crimes against women and children. It has also developed the Sahyog portal to route content takedown requests to social media platforms.
The government is continuing discussions with other online platforms to encourage proactive detection and removal of harmful content and direct reporting of suspected cases to Indian law enforcement agencies.
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