Amid buzz of upcoming Assembly elections in five states and the Lok Sabha election next year, the Narendra Modi is planning for a controversial move that will make it mandatory for WhatsApp to disclose the details of ‘first originator’ of a message, The Indian Express report said on Monday. The move comes amid increasing traffic of misinformation generated by the artificial intelligence on WhatsApp, the report further added. If the Centre actually sends the ‘first originator’ notice to WhatsApp, this would be the first time that an internet platform would get the government order under the section of 2021 IT Rules. The report quoting a government official said that the ‘first originator’ notice is being considered in a bid to contain the surge of deepfake videos on WhatsApp.
The Centre is concerned over the deluge of deepfake videos, specifically those about the political leaders going viral on WhatsApp, the IE report said. If sent, the ‘first originator’ notice would require WhatsApp to share details of the person who first sent the message in question for first time. A deepfake refers to a manipulated video where a person’s face or body has been digitally altered to make them seem like someone else. These alterations are often used to propagate false or misleading information.
It is about the ‘electoral integrity’ of India, the government official was quoted as saying by the Indian Express. The move may spark a new controversy as WhatsApp along with Meta (Facebook) have previously challenged the said clause of the IT rules saying that this goes against the platforms’ ethos of user’s privacy. The case is sub-judice at the moment.
WhatsApp, the most widely adopted messaging platform in India, has raised concerns about the proposed provision, deeming it a threat to its robust end-to-end encryption system, which safeguards private communications between individuals, even from the company’s access. WhatsApp has questioned the practicality of implementing such a measure, arguing that it would compromise its security mechanisms and result in the potential for “mass surveillance.”
