New Delhi (India) July 31: Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police have filed FIR against Arun Srinivas, head of Meta India and several users of the social media, who are responsible for sharing AI-morphed morphed videos - aimed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and have been doing rounds since the Cockroach Janata Party protests at Delhi's Jantar Mantar.
The sources said the incident was about circulated false videos on Facebook and Instagram, both Meta owned. The investigators believe that the circulated videos may have manipulated the viewer and are investigating possible violations of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act.
Complaint Cites Threat To Public Order
As noted in the complaints, the posts were also accompanied by remarks that included abusive and offensive terms directed at the Prime Minister and individuals appearing. The complainants claimed that the material seemed to have been manipulated or produced using artificial intelligence, and was broadly disseminated through social media channels.
They argued that such content might have a tendency to circulate false information in the public domain, to create unrest among the people, to outrage public decency, to tarnish the images of public figures, to disturb the public peace, to promote enmity amongst different sections of people, etc.
“The comments contain offensive language, ridicule, and indecent remarks directed at the Hon'ble Prime Minister and other individuals depicted in the manipulated content, thereby amplifying the offensive nature of the posts and encouraging their wider circulation and engagement. The above content appears to have been digitally altered or AI-generated and circulated on social media," the complaints stated.
"Such content has the potential to mislead the public, spread misinformation, incite hatred or public unrest, outrage public decency, defame or insult the dignity of public figures, disturb public order, promote hostility among different sections of society, and otherwise violate the applicable provisions of law," the complainants added.
Cyber Police Probe Misleading AI Video Circulation
The Cyber Crime Police are probing into the source of that AI generated videos, through which way they got proliferated on social media platforms and if the safeguards of META were enough to prevent their further dissemination. Also, the investigation will look into people who are suspected for uploading, distributing or designing those misleading videos.
The case demonstrates how social media companies are increasingly under pressure to regulate and control the dissemination of AI-created false information, highlighting the dilemma faced by intermediaries in controlling the free flow of such content. The police have maintained that the investigation is still at an early stage and no conclusions have been made. They added that future proceedings will depend upon the digital evidence collected in the investigation.