Meta has agreed to report cases involving child sexual abuse to law enforcement agencies in India, according to government sources, following sustained pressure from authorities over harmful content on its platforms.
The government’s engagement with Meta comes amid scrutiny of Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM), particularly on Instagram. Officials said the company’s decision is a “first step” towards improving child safety, while warning that platforms must do more to proactively identify and remove harmful content.
The development follows a series of actions against Meta. On September 9, senior Meta India executives appeared before the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) over an inquiry into alleged Instagram advertisements linked to child sexual abuse. The inquiry followed a BBC Eye investigation that found paid advertisements containing terms associated with child sexual abuse and, in some cases, links directing users towards Telegram channels.
In July, the government had ordered Meta to disable advertisements and content promoting or facilitating access to CSEAM on Instagram and sought an explanation from the company. Meta subsequently said it had removed several advertisements and suspended accounts associated with them.
Meta has maintained that it uses proactive detection systems and removes content that violates its policies. The company also said in July that when it becomes aware of apparent child exploitation, it reports such material to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), in line with applicable laws.
For India, Meta said these reports are routed through NCMEC to the national cybercrime reporting portal, in compliance with the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and applicable rules. It also said it had removed 160,000 accounts in India during the previous six months as part of its enforcement efforts.
The government’s position, however, signals a broader expectation from social media companies: responding after violations are reported may no longer be sufficient. Authorities want platforms to take proactive responsibility for detecting and reporting child-safety offences.
The shift places greater scrutiny on how effectively platforms identify harmful material before it spreads, and whether their moderation systems can prevent abusive content from reaching users.
