Delhi High Court Grants Panel 3 Months to Submit Comprehensive Report on Deepfakes

Deepfakes: Delhi High Court grants panel 3 months for comprehensive report

The Delhi High Court on Monday granted time to a panel constituted to examine the issue of deepfakes and submit its report. A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela directed the committee to also consider the petitioners' suggestions while examining the issue. The bench said, "By the next date we expect that the committee shall complete the deliberations and submit its report." The matter would be heard on July 21. The court was hearing three petitions against the non-regulation of deepfake technology in the country and the threat of its potential misuse. Deepfake technology facilitates the creation of realistic videos, audio recordings and images that can manipulate and mislead the viewers by superimposing the likeness of one person onto another, altering their words and actions, spreading disinformation in the process. The Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had informed about a committee being formed on November 20, 2024 to tackle the issue. On Monday, the counsel for MeitY submitted a status report and said the committee had held two meetings. The counsel, however, said the committee needed to deliberate further on the issue and sought three months to file a comprehensive report. The court, in November 2024, directed the Centre to nominate members for the committee. One of the pleas, filed by journalist Rajat Sharma, seeks regulation of deepfake technology in the country and directions to block public access to apps and software enabling the creation of such content. The other petition has been filed by Chaitanya Rohilla, a lawyer, against deepfakes and the unregulated use of artificial intelligence. Sharma, the Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Independent News Service Private Limited (INDIA TV), in a PIL said the proliferation of deepfake technology poses a significant threat to various aspects of society, including misinformation and disinformation campaign, and undermines the integrity of public discourse and the democratic process.

Submit Report On Deepfakes By July 21: Delhi HC To MeitY Panel

In his plea, journalist Rajat Sharma sought regulation of deepfakes and directions to block public access to apps that enable the creation of such synthetic content The Delhi High Court has reportedly directed a sub-committee of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to submit its report on the issue of deepfakes by July 21. As per PTI, a bench comprising Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued the directions while hearing a clutch of petitions against non-regulation of deepfakes and the threat of the technology's potential misuse. While granting time to the panel, the HC also directed the committee to also consider the petitioners' suggestions while examining the issue. "By the next date we expect that the committee shall complete the deliberations and submit its report," the bench said reportedly. The court has slated the matter for next hearing on July 21. During the hearing, the counsel for MeitY submitted a status report on the working of the panel, saying that the committee had held two meetings. It is pertinent to note that the ministry, during a hearing in November 2024, had informed the HC that it had formed a panel to study issues related to deepfakes. Arguing before the HC, the MeitY counsel contended that the committee needed to further discuss the issue and sought three months to file a comprehensive report. Agreeing to the demand, the court agreed to the contention and granted three months time to the panel. The Case Before The Delhi HC: The matter involves a petition filed by journalist and India TV editor-in-chief Rajat Sharma, who has sought regulation of deepfakes and directions to block public access to apps that enable the creation of such synthetic content. In his plea, Sharma reportedly claimed that the proliferation of deepfake technology poses a significant threat to various aspects of society, including misinformation and disinformation. The petition also claims that deepfakes undermine the integrity of public discourse and the democratic process. The second petition has been filed by lawyer Chaitanya Rohilla, who has also sought directions against unregulated use of artificial intelligence (AI). Another petition has been filed by model Kanchan Nagar, seeking prohibition of deepfakes for non-consensual commercial purposes and in commercial advertising (in cases where original artists are not compensated fairly).

Social Media Platforms Seek Clear Definition To Curb Deepfakes

The recommendations were part of a status report submitted by the electronics and IT ministry before the Delhi HC on March 24 Social media platforms and industry stakeholders have called for mandatory AI labelling standards and grievance redressal mechanisms to crack the whip on deepfakes. The recommendations were part of a status report submitted by the electronics and information technology ministry (MeitY) before the Delhi High Court (HC) on Monday (March 24). The feedback came to the fore during stakeholder meetings conducted by a nine-member committee, which has been entrusted with studying the management and regulation of deepfakes. The panel, which was formed in November 2024, held its first meeting at the end of December 2024. As per minutes of the meetings, industry stakeholders rued the lack of a standard definition for deepfakes and called for a regulation around "mandatory Al content disclosure" with an emphasis on malicious actors rather than on creative uses of deepfakes. "... there should be regulation around mandatory Al content disclosure, labelling standards, and grievance redressal mechanisms, while giving emphasis on malicious actors rather than benign or creative uses of deepfake technology," read the minutes of the meeting, which took place on January 21. The attendees, which included representatives from Google, Telegram, X and Meta, also flagged the growing misuse of deepfakes for perpetrating scams, targeting women during state elections. The stakeholders also called for the need for stricter enforcement rather than new laws. What Else Did The Stakeholders Say? The meeting also saw digital intermediaries chime in with their perspectives and the steps taken to curb deepfakes. While Google said that it had mandated labelling policy for AI-generated content, Meta claimed that it was working on protecting celebrity personas from synthetic content. Meanwhile, a representative of X, while underscoring that the social media platform has a "synthetic and manipulated media policy", said that it is important to draw a distinction between deceptive and non-deceptive content. "Content which are deceptive in nature are taken down. They (X) also stated that for certain posts to be labelled, the post should be extremely deceptive and harmful. They work within existing legal framework to take down content. As per X, not all Al content is deceptive in nature. It is important to draw that distinction going forward," read the minutes of the meeting. Meanwhile, the first meeting of the committee, on December 20, saw the members underlined suggestions necessary to formulate the report. The draft report will encompass aspects such as data protection laws, mandatory labelling of deepfakes, and guidelines for consent and content moderation. In addition, the panel also underlined technical aspects such as AI detection tools, watermarking, and collaboration with technology firms as critical to curbing deepfakes. This comes just days after the Delhi HC directed the panel to submit its report on the issue of deepfakes by July 21. It was at this hearing that MeitY submitted the status report. The Bone Of Contention MeitY formed the panel after the Delhi HC heard a petition filed by journalist and India TV editor-in-chief Rajat Sharma for regulation of deepfakes and blocking access to apps that enable the creation of such synthetic content. In his plea, Sharma reportedly claimed that the proliferation of deepfakes poses a significant threat to various aspects of society, including misinformation and disinformation, adding that the technology undermines the integrity of public discourse and the democratic process. Another petition, filed by lawyer Chaitanya Rohilla, also sought directions against unregulated use of AI.