Delhi police registers FIR against Meta India over child sexual abuse material on its platforms

Delhi Police has registered an FIR against Meta India over the reported availability of Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Material (CSEAM) on its platforms, following directions from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). The action comes amid an ongoing examination of allegations that advertisements on Instagram were being used to direct users towards channels offering child sexual abuse material.

NewsBharati    05-Nov-2026 12:34:04 PM
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Delhi Police has registered an FIR against Meta India over the availability of Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Material (CSEAM) on platforms operated by the company. NHRC member Priyank Kanoongo announced the development on November 4, saying the police action followed directions issued by the human rights body.
 
FIR against Meta 
(The image is AI Generated using clips from X and India Today)
 
“Acting on our directions, Delhi Police has registered an FIR regarding the availability of Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM) on platforms operated by @MetaIndia,” Kanoongo said in a post on X.
 
 
The FIR marks a significant development in the ongoing scrutiny of Meta’s content moderation and child-safety systems in India. However, the specific FIR number, penal sections invoked and details of the allegations against the company have not yet been made public.
 
Instagram advertisements under scrutiny
 
The latest action follows concerns raised over paid advertisements on Instagram that allegedly promoted or facilitated access to child sexual abuse material.
 
In September, the NHRC took cognisance of reports that certain advertisements appearing on Meta-owned Instagram used objectionable search terms and directed users towards Telegram channels allegedly offering such material. The advertisements were reported to have passed Meta’s review systems and remained available until the matter was brought to the company’s attention.
 
The Commission sought reports from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Delhi Police. It also sought information on whether the statutory reporting requirements under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act had been followed.
 
The NHRC raised questions about the responsibility of platforms when their advertising, recommendation and algorithmic systems are allegedly used to promote or direct users towards illegal material. It also sought details of action taken against those involved and the information gathered from other platforms, including Telegram.
  
 
NCPCR had issued notice to Meta in July
 
The issue had already come under the scrutiny of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).
 
On July 3, 2026, the child rights body issued a notice to Meta seeking an explanation over advertisements allegedly linked to child sexual exploitation and abuse material. Meta submitted its response about a week later.
 
The NCPCR subsequently decided to initiate a formal inquiry to examine the allegations. As part of the proceedings, it summoned Meta India's Managing Director and Head for a hearing scheduled for September 16.
 
 
The Union government had also taken up the issue. In July, MeitY directed Meta to disable advertisements and content promoting or facilitating access to child sexual abuse material and sought an explanation from the company.
 
What Meta says about the allegations
 
Meta has maintained that it does not permit child sexual exploitation content on its platforms and has a zero-tolerance policy towards such material.
 
In a statement published on July 7, the company acknowledged reports about Instagram advertisements that violated its policies. It said its enforcement systems had already identified and disabled several advertisements and the accounts behind them before the cases were brought to its attention. Meta added that its subsequent investigation led to the removal of additional advertisements, the disabling of accounts and the blocking of links connected to policy-violating content.
 
On October 7, Meta announced additional measures to strengthen its detection systems. These included artificial intelligence tools to identify advertisements that either feature child sexual exploitation material or use seemingly harmless content to direct users towards illegal activity outside its platforms.
 
The company also said it had expanded its investigations to identify connected accounts and block links leading to violating material.
 
According to Meta, between January and June 2026, it took action against 5.3 million pieces of child sexual exploitation content on Facebook and Instagram in India. The company said more than 98 per cent of this material was detected and addressed proactively, before users reported it.
 
Globally, Meta reported action against 33.2 million pieces of such content across Facebook and Instagram during the same period, with more than 97 per cent detected proactively.
 
The company has also said it would report child-safety cases directly to India's National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, operated by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C).
 
Legal responsibility and child safety
 
The POCSO Act places reporting obligations on individuals who have knowledge of, or apprehend, the commission of an offence under the law. Section 19 requires such information to be reported to the Special Juvenile Police Unit or local police.
 
The circulation and transmission of material depicting the sexual exploitation of children can also attract provisions of the POCSO Act and the Information Technology Act, depending on the facts of the case.
 
The Supreme Court has separately emphasised the need for stronger systems to detect and remove child sexual exploitation material online. In its October 2026 proceedings in the Just Rights for Children Alliance matter, the court addressed the use of technology for detection, reporting mechanisms, verification of material and the responsibilities of intermediaries.
 
The FIR against Meta India brings the matter into the criminal investigation stage. The police investigation will be important in establishing the nature of the material involved, how it was made available or promoted, and whether there were lapses in the platform's systems or statutory compliance.