New IT Rules Amendments Aim to Simplify Content Takedown Process in India

To expedite the process of content removal by digital intermediaries, the IT ministry (MeitY) announced changes to the IT Rules, 2021 on 22 October. The new regulations, known as the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2025, establish senior-level accountability and provide detailed guidelines for removing “illegal” content.

The revised regulations will take effect on November 15. According to the new regulations, which only apply to Section 3(1)(d) of the IT Rules, only specific high-level officials are now authorised to notify intermediaries to remove illegal content. This covers a senior official who holds a position higher than joint secretary. “Adequate government or its agency” was all that was mentioned in the prior version of the IT Rules. A takedown request may be made by a director or an officer of comparable rank acting through a single corresponding officer in the event that there is no joint secretary.

New IT Rules Put Bigger Scanner on Online Content

The new guidelines also provide police officers the authority to order takedowns. Social media platforms may receive such notifications from law enforcement agencies through a specifically authorised person who is not less than the rank of Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG).

Additionally, an officer at least as high as the secretary of the relevant department will now periodically evaluate all such removal orders. According to the notification, this procedure was put in place to make sure that these notifications are appropriate, necessary, and compliant with Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act. All such takedown requests must “clearly” state the nature of the illegal act, the particular identification (URL) or other electronic location of the information, and the legal foundation and statutory provision invoked, according to the new standards.

Weeks after social media site X’s appeal against the Center’s use of Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act to prohibit content was purportedly rejected by Karnataka’s high court (HC), the revisions were made. The Centre seems to be simplifying the structure to avoid any legal problems, as the Elon Musk-led platform now intends to contest the decision.

New Rules Segregate Real from AI Content

The notification was sent out on the same day that the IT ministry requested public input on changes to the IT Rules, 2021, that would be made to combat deepfakes. The Centre intends to require all online platforms to identify all deepfakes and AI-produced content as “synthetically generated information” in accordance with the draft rules.

The government also intends to increase the pressure on big social media companies to ask users to confirm whether the stuff they publish is artificially created. Technical mechanisms, such as automated tools, must subsequently be put in place by these platforms to confirm that user assertions about AI-generated material are accurate. Legal repercussions and the loss of safe harbour protections will follow noncompliance with these suggested standards.