Google is dedicated to following local laws and working constructively with governments as they scrutinise and implement regulatory frameworks to keep up with the rapidly expanding technological sector, according to Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google.
“It is certainly early days, and our local personnel is highly involved… we always follow local regulations in any nation in which we operate, and we work constructively. We have transparent reports, and when we cooperate with government demands, we mention it in our transparency reports “Mr. Pichai made the remarks during a virtual press conference with a limited group of media persons.
He went on to say that a free and open internet is “fundamental,” and that India has a long history of doing so.
As a firm, we are very clear about the principles of free and open internet and the advantages it delivers, and we advocate for it, as well as interact constructively with authorities all over the globe, and we participate in these processes, which I believe is part of how we learn…”
He went on to say that the corporation respects legislative procedures and, where necessary, pushes back. “It’s a balance we’ve established all around the world,” he explained.
Mr. Pichai stated that technology is having a greater and broader impact on society and that the environment is changing at a rapid rate.
“As a result, we fully anticipate governments to analyze and enact regulatory frameworks. We regard it as a natural part of countries figuring out how to govern and adjust themselves in this technology-intensive environment, whether it’s Europe with the copyright directive or India with information regulation, etc “He went on to say that Google works constructively with regulators all around the world and participates in these processes.
The new IT guidelines for social media businesses, which went into effect on Wednesday, seek to make digital platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, and Google – which have witnessed tremendous growth in usage in India over the last several years – more accountable and responsible for the information housed on their platform.
The new guidelines, released on February 25, require significant social media players to perform further due diligence, such as appointing a chief compliance officer, a nodal contact person, and a resident grievance officer.
‘Significant social media intermediaries,’ defined as those with more than 50 lakh registered users, were given three months to comply with the new rules. Noncompliance with the guidelines would result in the loss of these social media firms’ intermediary status, which provides them with exemptions and some immunity from liability for any third-party information and data stored by them. In other words, they may be responsible for legal action.
Google has previously said that it has constantly invested in major product upgrades, resources, and staff to guarantee that it combats unlawful content in an effective and fair manner while also complying with local laws in the regions in which it operates.
The new laws also oblige these platforms to remove any materials identified by authorities within 36 hours of receiving a complaint and to erase posts displaying nudity or modified photographs within 24 hours.
The new standards include the establishment of a comprehensive complaint redressal structure with an official stationed in the nation, and major social media firms will be required to publish a monthly compliance report detailing specifics of complaints received and actions done, as well as information of information deleted proactively.
They must also have a physical contact address in India advertised on their website, mobile app or both.
Intriguingly, WhatsApp has filed a petition in the Delhi High Court against the new digital laws, claiming that the obligation for the business to grant access to encrypted conversations violates privacy rights.
The government, on the other hand, has vehemently defended the new guidelines, claiming that requiring messaging networks like WhatsApp to divulge the origin of flagged communications does not breach privacy and that the new laws would have no influence on the popular free-messaging platform’s usual operation.
