The Government of India has intensified its efforts to tackle the growing threat of Artificial Intelligence-generated deepfakes by approving 13 Responsible AI projects focused on advanced detection technologies while simultaneously strengthening legal and regulatory safeguards. The move comes as authorities seek to ensure a safer, trusted and accountable digital ecosystem amid the rapid rise of AI-generated audio, video and text capable of misleading users and facilitating cybercrime.
The initiatives are part of the government’s broader strategy to promote responsible AI innovation while protecting citizens from misinformation, impersonation, financial fraud and online abuse.
Comprehensive Legal Framework Against Deepfakes
The Centre highlighted that multiple existing laws already provide legal protection against misuse of AI-generated content.
Under the Information Technology Act, 2000, offences such as identity theft, impersonation, privacy violations and the publication or transmission of obscene or sexually explicit material are punishable. The Act also empowers the government to block unlawful online content, direct intermediaries to remove illegal information and authorise law enforcement agencies to investigate cyber offences.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023 further strengthens action against misinformation by penalising false statements, rumours and misleading reports that can create public fear or disturb public order. Organised cybercrime involving deepfake content can also be prosecuted under the new criminal law.
Social Media Platforms Face Tougher Compliance
The government has reinforced the responsibilities of online intermediaries through the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
Platforms are required to prevent users from hosting or sharing content that is obscene, violates privacy, promotes hate, harms children, impersonates individuals using AI or threatens national security.
Significant Social Media Intermediaries (SSMIs) with more than 50 lakh registered users in India must also deploy automated systems to detect unlawful content, assist law enforcement in tracing the origin of serious offences, publish regular compliance reports and establish grievance redressal mechanisms.
Users dissatisfied with a platform’s response can appeal through the Grievance Appellate Committees (GACs) if complaints are not addressed within the prescribed timelines.
Major Rule Changes Introduced in 2026
A significant amendment to the IT Rules, notified on February 10, 2026, introduced stricter safeguards specifically targeting synthetically generated information, including deepfakes.
The revised rules mandate that permissible AI-generated content must carry clear labels and traceable metadata so users can identify synthetic material easily.
The amendments also impose stronger due diligence obligations on intermediaries, including mandatory user awareness about legal consequences of sharing unlawful AI-generated content.
Importantly, platforms are now required to act much faster. The timeline for removing unlawful content upon valid government or court orders has been reduced dramatically from 36 hours to just 3 hours. Grievance redressal timelines have also been shortened, particularly for sensitive matters such as impersonation and non-consensual intimate imagery.
Intermediaries are additionally required to deploy technical safeguards, including automated detection tools, to prevent users from generating or sharing AI content that violates Indian law.
Failure to comply with these obligations may result in the loss of legal protection available under Section 79 of the IT Act, exposing platforms to legal action.
Government Issues Multiple Advisories
To ensure stricter compliance, the government has issued several advisories to digital platforms over the past year.
The advisories directed intermediaries to strengthen internal compliance systems, improve content moderation and prevent the spread of unlawful AI-generated material. Special guidance has also been issued regarding religious content, abusive synthetic media and non-consensual intimate imagery.
Authorities have also introduced a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for tackling the online circulation of non-consensual intimate images, ensuring coordinated action by victims, intermediaries and law enforcement agencies.
AI Preserving India’s Cultural Heritage
Beyond regulating harmful AI content, the government is also using Artificial Intelligence to preserve India’s rich cultural heritage.
The Gyan Bharatam Web Portal employs AI technologies including Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Handwritten Text Recognition (HTR), semantic search and machine-assisted translation to provide intelligent access to India’s manuscript collections.
Also Read: India Unleashes Massive Live Events Revolution To Become Global Entertainment Hub By 2030
Its AI-powered interface, Gyan Mitram, enables contextual interpretation and multilingual exploration of historical manuscripts.
Meanwhile, BharatiyaGPT introduces a “Talk to Manuscript” feature, allowing users to interact with ancient texts through conversational AI using text, voice and audio interfaces.
13 Responsible AI Projects Strengthen Deepfake Detection
Under the IndiaAI Mission’s Safe & Trusted AI pillar, the government has approved 13 Responsible AI projects across educational institutions aimed at building indigenous AI governance tools.
Among the flagship initiatives are Saakshya, a multi-agent deepfake detection framework jointly developed by IIT Jodhpur and IIT Madras, AI Vishleshak for advanced audio-visual forgery detection, and IIT Kharagpur’s Real-Time Voice Deepfake Detection System.
These projects are expected to improve India’s capability to identify manipulated media and reduce AI-enabled cyber threats.
Over 11.37 Lakh Citizens Receive Cyber Security Training
The government has also significantly expanded public awareness efforts under the Information Security Education and Awareness (ISEA) programme.
According to official data, 6,650 cyber security awareness workshops have been conducted nationwide, benefiting more than 11.37 lakh participants, including students, teachers, government officials, law enforcement personnel and members of the public.
Educational resources such as multilingual handbooks, posters, videos, children’s learning materials and awareness campaigns have also been distributed through digital and traditional media.
Additionally, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) continues to publish advisories, awareness campaigns and cyber safety guidance on emerging AI threats, including deepfakes, helping internet users recognise manipulated content and stay protected from online fraud.
Click here to join our WhatsApp Channel for real-time news updates and exclusive coverage.
