Meta's global team summoned: Govt to question algorithm bias, liability over Modi post curb

Meta's global team, which has been summoned by the government after the social media company restricted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Facebook post, will be questioned on issues around algorithmic bias and their role in public order, sources said on Friday.

Sources further said that Meta's global team is expected sometime in the middle of next week.

Sources said Meta's global team will be "categorically" asked to clarify issues around algorithmic bias, how their algorithm operates, and the company's role in public order.

The team will also appear before a parliamentary panel.

The move assumes significance as the government earlier this week summoned a top Meta executive after Modi's recent post addressing India's youth and promising stringent measures against paper leaks was briefly restricted on Facebook.

While the U.S.-headquartered social media giant attributed the incident to a technical glitch and apologised, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) found the explanation "inadequate".

In the aftermath of the issue, Meta informed the IT Ministry that posts by the prime minister and select prominent accounts will be subject to additional oversight on the platform, with multiple levels of checks involving senior company officials.

Meta wrote to the government outlining the specifics of enhanced and rigorous safeguards it implemented for content posted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other prominent accounts.

It is pertinent to mention that Hyderabad Cyber Crime police has also registered cases against Meta India head Arun Srinivas and certain accounts on Facebook and Instagram over allegedly morphed and AI posts targeting PM Modi.

Sources said that when rules and laws are violated, liabilities will arise, sources said.

Government sources said that the impact of social media on society is well documented. They also cited studies indicating that excessive use of social media and digital media can adversely affect the cognitive health and mental well-being of children and adults.

"Keeping all these aspects in mind, steps that are needed will be taken," a source said, asserting that the government is serious about these issues.