NCPCR begins inquiry into alleged child porn Ads on Instagram

New Delhi: The National Commission For Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has decided to institute an inquiry into alleged advertisements related to child pornography on Instagram, sources told ET. The national body had issued a notice to Meta Platforms, which owns Instagram on 3rd July, hours after an investigative report by BBC Eye alleged advertisements related to Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM) were live on Instagram in India.

The ads used graphic terms, and linked users to channels on the messaging app Telegram, where they could buy the material for as little as ₹99. Given that ads on Instagram are only published after first being approved by its moderation technology, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had also directed Meta to disable them, and other content promoting and facilitating access to CSEAM.