India: Implemented Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2022

On 28 October 2022, the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules 2022 enter into force, following the publication in the Official Gazette on the same day. The amended Rules lay down requirements for intermediary platforms, including operators of user-generated content platforms. Under the amended rules, intermediaries are obliged to ensure user compliance with the regulations, rules, and privacy policies of their service. Further, intermediaries will have a duty to prevent users from publishing certain categories of harmful or unlawful content. The amended rules also require intermediaries to respond to and, in some cases, remove reported content within a certain time frame while also allowing intermediaries to enact safeguards to prevent user abuse of grievance mechanisms. Finally, the amended rules introduce the "Grievance Appellate Committee" that will have the power to overrule the decisions of social media companies and other internet companies, allowing users to appeal against the grievance redressal process of the online intermediaries before this body.