Take immediate action against obscene and indecent content! Central government’s warning to social media companies

By Samira Vishwas On Dec 30, 2025

Take immediate action against obscene and indecent content!
Central government’s warning to social media companies
Reminder of IT rules

Central Govt (Central Govt.) Social media Companies have been warned. The government has urged them to crack down on obscene and obscene content as well as illegal content related to child sexual exploitation. Legal action will be taken against those violating the order. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology said social media companies are bound to comply with the order under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, saying they will not upload obscene and obscene content on their platforms.

Companies should check their sites

The ministry has asked social media companies to inspect their sites and take action against obscene and indecent content on their platforms. Failure to do so may result in prosecution under national law, it said.

PTI INFOGRAPHICS | Act on obscene, unlawful content or face consequences: Govt’s warning to online platforms
The Center has warned online platforms, mainly social media firms, of legal consequences if they fail to act on obscene, vulgar, pornographic, paedophilic and other forms… pic.twitter.com/Vsuz76iLFm
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 30, 2025

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The ministry’s order comes at a time when it has been observed that social media platforms are not taking strict action against obscene illegal content. The ministry has said that failure to comply with the provisions of the Information Technology Rules, 2021 may result in action against social media companies under the IT Act, BNS and other applicable criminal laws.

Government has reminded of IT rules

The government reminded social media companies of the provisions of the IT Act and IT Rules, 2021, which require companies to ensure that obscene, indecent or child sexual exploitation content is not disseminated on their online platforms.

What does the IT Rules, 2021 say?

According to the IT Rules, 2021, if a person complains that a photo or video posted online shows him engaging in sexual activity, shows nudity or contains false images, the social media platform or website must remove the content within 24 hours.

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