New Delhi: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday apologised for the presence of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), deepfake content and operational lapses on the company's platforms, while a Meta delegation separately apologised to Union Electronics and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for erroneously removing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Facebook post for nearly five hours on July 28.
The apology came after the government mounted pressure on the social media giant through the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology, chaired by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey. The panel had given Zuckerberg three days to apologise and warned that Meta could lose its statutory "safe harbour" protection if it failed to do so.
Dubey said the committee had decided to write to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Ministry of Home Affairs, arguing that deleting the Prime Minister's post was beyond the role of an intermediary and amounted to editorial action.
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He had warned that if Meta failed to apologise, the committee would recommend withdrawing the legal immunity available to social media intermediaries. Without safe harbour protection, Meta could face a flood of FIRs over unlawful content posted on its platforms, he had said.
The apparent pressure prompted a Meta delegation, led by Chief Global Affairs Officer Joel Kaplan, to meet Vaishnaw on Wednesday. According to the company, Kaplan apologised "on behalf of Meta" for the erroneous restriction of the Prime Minister's post.
After meeting Vaishnaw, Meta officials also held discussions with IT Secretary S. Krishnan, who had earlier flagged a "range of issues" with the company's content moderation systems. Krishnan said verified accounts of prominent personalities should have additional safeguards before content is removed and sought an explanation from Meta on why such failures occurred.
