Whatsapp gets warning: Check fake news or face legal consequences

New Delhi, July 20: WhatsApp saw the red eye of our government because it got another notice asking it to come out with effective solutions to curb the menace of fake news on Thursday.

 

It also warned the company that mediums used for propagation of rumors are liable to be treated as abettors and can face legal consequences if they remain mute spectators.

The IT Ministry said in a statement that it has approached WhatsApp to bring more effective solutions to the table, to ensure greater accountability and facilitate enforcement of law beyond the existing efforts towards labeling forwards and identifying fake news.

Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad informed on Thursday the Rajya Sabha that he will hold a discussion with stakeholders, including political parties, to evolve a policy to deal with the misuse of social media.

Facebook-owned WhatsApp has been under fire from the Indian government over the fake news and false information being circulated on its messaging platform. Such messages have incited mob-fury, triggering multiple cases of lynching across the country.

In response, WhatsApp announced a new feature to let its users identify the messages that are forwarded.