← 9 November 2026's Current Affairs · Polity GS-2 Prelims ★★★★☆ Mains ★★★★★
Safe harbour for social media platforms comes under government scrutiny
खबर में क्यों?
Platforms are not liable for your posts, until they are: Section 79 safe harbour explained for GS2
Safe harbour under Section 79 of the IT Act is being re-examined by the government.
Why it matters: GS-2 core; factual, Prelims-type
What you need to know
2 मिनट
Safe harbour is the legal protection that shields online intermediaries from liability for content posted by users, provided they follow due-diligence rules.
In India it flows from Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the Supreme Court's Shreya Singhal ruling read it down so that platforms act on court or government orders.
The government is now reviewing how far platforms should keep this protection.
स्रोत: Topper IAS editorial (PIB / The Hindu / Indian Express)
मुख्य तथ्य
Remember these
- Safe harbour shields online intermediaries from liability for user-posted content, if they follow due diligence
- Source: Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000
- Shreya Singhal v. Union of India (2015) read down Section 79 so platforms act on court or government orders
- Section 66A was struck down in the same Shreya Singhal case
- Section 69A allows the government to block public access to online content
प्रीलिम्स · मेन्स
How the exam will ask it
प्रीलिम्स
- Section 79 of the IT Act, 2000 exempts intermediaries from liability for third-party content, subject to due diligence.
- In Shreya Singhal (2015), the Supreme Court held that platforms need act on takedown only upon a court order or government notification.
- Section 69A of the IT Act deals with blocking of public access to information, while Section 79 deals with intermediary liability.
- Loss of safe harbour makes a platform liable for user content as if it were the publisher.
मेन्स
GS Paper 2 (Governance/Polity): the issue is how far online platforms should be shielded for user content. Section 79 of the IT Act and the Shreya Singhal reading-down balance free speech under Article 19(1)(a) with accountability, while a rollback may push platforms to over-censor. The way forward is a clear, graded accountability framework with due process, transparency and judicial oversight.
Quick recall
Answer before you reveal
Under which provision of the Information Technology Act, 2000 are online intermediaries given 'safe harbour' protection from liability for third-party content?
- Section 66A
- Section 69A
- Section 43A
- Section 79
उत्तर देखें
उत्तर: D — Correct: Section 79 — Section 79 exempts intermediaries from liability for third-party content when they observe due diligence. • Section 66A — wrong: Section 66A, which penalised offensive messages, was struck down in Shreya Singhal and is not a safe harbour provision. • Section 69A — wrong: Section 69A empowers the government to block public access to online content; it is not the safe harbour clause. • Section 43A — wrong: Section 43A deals with compensation for failure to protect sensitive personal data, not intermediary liability.
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