New Delhi: The Government of India has strengthened its regulations around artificial intelligence-generated and synthetically altered content, introducing stricter responsibilities for digital platforms and social media companies.

Under the updated Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, platforms face a significantly shorter deadline to act on certain unlawful content after receiving a valid government or court direction.

Removal Deadline Reduced From 36 Hours to 3 Hours

One of the major changes is the reduction of the response period for specified unlawful content.

Platforms previously had up to 36 hours to remove content following a valid legal direction. The revised framework reduces this period to three hours, increasing the pressure on intermediaries to respond quickly to content that violates applicable laws.

The change is aimed at limiting the spread of harmful or unlawful material online, particularly content that can rapidly reach large audiences through social media and other digital platforms.

New Requirements for AI-Generated Content

The revised rules also introduce stronger requirements for synthetically generated information, including AI-generated or manipulated images, videos and audio.

Platforms are required to provide clear and prominent disclosures for permitted synthetic content. The framework also seeks to improve the ability to identify AI-generated material through technical measures such as metadata or other traceability mechanisms, where technically feasible.

These measures are intended to help users distinguish between authentic media and content that has been created or significantly modified using artificial intelligence.

Deepfakes Come Under Greater Scrutiny

The changes are particularly significant as AI-powered deepfakes become increasingly sophisticated.

Manipulated videos, cloned voices and digitally altered images can be used to spread misinformation, impersonate individuals or facilitate fraud. The new requirements are designed to make synthetic content more identifiable and give authorities and platforms stronger mechanisms to respond to unlawful material.

However, the three-hour removal requirement should not be interpreted as requiring every AI-generated piece of content to be automatically deleted. The removal timeline applies in situations covered by the relevant legal and government directions, while permitted synthetic content can be subject to labelling and traceability requirements.

What the New Rules Mean for Digital Platforms

The updated framework places greater responsibility on intermediaries to monitor their compliance and respond to legally actionable content more quickly.

For technology companies, social media platforms and other intermediaries, the changes could require improvements in content moderation systems, reporting mechanisms and processes for identifying synthetic media.

For users, clearer labelling could make it easier to understand whether an image, video or audio clip has been generated or significantly altered using AI.

Growing Focus on AI Safety and Digital Trust

India’s regulatory approach reflects growing concerns about the impact of generative AI on online safety, misinformation, impersonation and cybercrime.

As AI tools become easier to access, the ability to generate convincing fake media has also increased. Stronger disclosure, traceability and content-removal requirements are therefore becoming an important part of efforts to improve trust in digital communications.

Conclusion

India’s updated IT rules mark a significant step toward stronger accountability for AI-generated and synthetic content online. By reducing the response timeline for specified unlawful content from 36 hours to three hours and introducing stronger requirements for AI-content labelling and traceability, the government is putting greater responsibility on digital platforms.

The effectiveness of the framework will ultimately depend on how consistently platforms implement these requirements while balancing user rights, innovation and online safety.