Centre to Summon Meta Over Instagram Ads Allegedly Promoting Child Sexual Abuse Material in India

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is set to summon Meta over reports that Instagram served advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to users in India, according to government sources.

Sources told Republic World that IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has directed MeitY officials to seek an explanation from Meta over the matter, with the ministry expected to question the company on how such advertisements were approved and displayed on one of its largest platforms.

The development follows an investigation by the BBC, which reported that Instagram's advertising system allowed advertisers to promote content linked to child sexual abuse, raising fresh concerns over the platform's ad review and moderation mechanisms.

MeitY to Seek Explanation From Meta

According to sources, MeitY officials will summon Meta and ask the company to explain how advertisements allegedly promoting or directing users towards child sexual abuse material were able to run on Instagram in India. The ministry is also expected to seek details on the safeguards Meta has in place to detect and prevent such advertisements before they are published.

Investigation Triggered Fresh Scrutiny

The government's action follows a BBC investigation that found Instagram's advertising tools were allegedly used to promote accounts and websites associated with child sexual abuse material. The report said some advertisements used coded language and hashtags that enabled users searching for abusive content to discover such networks more easily, despite Meta's policies prohibiting child sexual exploitation. The findings have prompted renewed questions over whether automated ad review systems are adequately detecting such content.

Meta Says It Removes CSAM

Meta has long maintained that child sexual exploitation is among the most serious violations of its policies. The company says it uses a combination of artificial intelligence, automated detection systems, specialist review teams, and partnerships with organisations such as the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to identify and remove child sexual abuse material from its platforms.

Meta also says it reports confirmed cases to relevant law enforcement agencies and continuously updates its systems to identify emerging forms of abuse.

Fresh Pressure on Social Media Platforms

The latest development adds to the growing regulatory pressure facing major technology companies in India. In recent months, the government has stepped up scrutiny of online platforms over harmful content, cybersecurity, user safety, and compliance with Indian regulations. The reported summons indicates that MeitY expects platforms to demonstrate stronger safeguards, particularly when it comes to preventing the spread or promotion of content involving child sexual exploitation.

If summoned, Meta will likely be asked to explain not only how the advertisements appeared but also what additional measures it plans to implement to prevent similar incidents in the future.