A three-pronged taskforce in the works to rein in digital ads running amok
NEW DELHI : Three high-profile ministries that oversee different aspects of social media advertising are joining hands to create a taskforce that can comprehensively crackdown on misleading ads and fraudulent schemes promoted on digital platforms. An inter-ministerial taskforce to monitor and regulate social media ads is being established by the ministries of information and broadcasting, electronics and information technology, and consumer affairs, according to two people aware of the development.
The taskforce will create a comprehensive regulatory framework to monitor and regulate social media ads, oversee compliance, and take action against violators, they said. Currently, the ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B) deals with advertisement content, while the ministry of consumer affairs oversees misleading content and surrogate advertisements, and the ministry of information technology (Meity) governs social media intermediaries or platforms.
“By themselves, each of the three ministries is unable to take up all the social media advertising-related issues," said one of the persons mentioned above. “For instance, if the I&B ministry issued an advisory against offshore betting and gambling companies, it is Meity that would block them on OTT platforms and not I&B directly.
However, even Meity can only do so upon receiving directives from the other ministry," this person said. “The ministry of consumer affairs also issues advisories, but there are no regulations on what is to be done with misleading content, so there is no final outcome on issues despite there being violations." The taskforce is likely to be established by June, said the two people familiar with the government’s plan, both of them declining to be
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