Set up India cell, follow laws to curb fake news: IT minister to WhatsApp CEO

Mumbai: In a bid to curb fake news and rising crimes due to circulation of viral messages on social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Union IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday met Whatsapp CEO Chris Daniels and suggested several measures.

RS Prasad said that though WhatsApp has been a boon to the citizens of India, there are some 'sinister developments' that provoke crimes like mob lynching and revenge porn.

Terming the meeting 'productive', the Union minister said that the widely-used platform needs to 'find solutions to these challenges which are a downright criminal violation of Indian laws'.

The ministry put forth three measures that the platform can take to combat fake news.

To begin with, WhatsApp must have a grievance officer in India.

Second, there should be proper compliance of Indian laws.

RS Prasad said, "We won't appreciate a scenario where any problem will have to be answered in America."

He added, "WhatsApp has become an important component of India's digital storage," and thus a proper corporate entity must be located in India.

RS Prasad also complimented Daniels for the extraordinary technological awakening that WhatsApp has led in the country. He said that 'positive developments' took place especially in sectors of education, healthcare, and the recent relief work in Kerala.

India is the largest market for WhatsApp with the country accounting for over 200 million of its total 1.3 billion user base.

Earlier, the IT ministry had also made it clear to WhatsApp that the issue of fake news was far more important than other plans in the current circumstances.