Ministry directed Social Media platforms to take action against hoax Bomb Threats who disrupted Air Travel
Reportedly amid the unabated hoax bomb threats to airlines via global Internet platforms, the Centre on saturday directed social media intermediaries like Elon Musk-headed X and Meta to ensure due diligence and promptly remove misinformation that affects public order and security of the state. In an advisory, the IT Ministry said such hoax bomb threats are mostly misinformation that is massively disrupting the public order, operations of airlines and security of airline travellers.Meanwhile indian airlines have received more than 100 hoax bomb threats in a few days, forcing delays and emergency landings. The advisory stated “Considering the serious nature of the situation, the Ministry of Electronics and Information technology reminds with emphasis that all the intermediaries including social media intermediaries must make reasonable efforts to disallow such malicious acts including hoax bomb threats from being disseminated on their platforms”.Moreover amid a surge in hoax bomb threats, Civil Aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu has expressed serious concern, saying the government is committed to taking strict action against those responsible for these malicious acts. On Friday, over 20 flights of various airlines reportedly received bomb threats. In this regard the ministry said the intermediaries including social media intermediaries must observe their due diligence obligations that include the prompt removal or disabling access to such unlawful information specified under the IT Rules, 2021, including hoax bomb threats, well within the strict timelines as prescribed under the IT Rules, 2021.