India: Adopted CCPA Advisory on Prohibition of Advertising, Promotion and Endorsement of Unlawful Activities

On 6 March 2023, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) issued an advisory prohibiting the advertising, promotion, and endorsement of unlawful activities on digital media platforms, particularly promoting betting or gambling. The advisory applies to publishers of news and current affairs content, online curated content, private satellite TV channels, online advertising intermediaries, and self-regulating bodies of content publishers. The advisory cites the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements 2022, which explicitly prohibit illegal advertisements for products or services. Violations of these guidelines could result in strict actions being taken against all stakeholders involved, including manufacturers, advertisers, publishers, intermediaries, social media platforms, celebrities, influencers, endorsers, and others, under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act 2019.