KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday observed that online platforms should be closely monitored to ensure that anonymous, mala fide content is not circulated on social media. It also directed the authorities to take necessary action under the provisions of the Information Technology Act against those who indulge in such actions.
The state government also produced the protocol formed to deal with cases regarding motivated, malicious, and negative ‘review bombing’.
Justice Devan Ramachandran made the observation while hearing the petitions filed by the Kerala Film Producers Association and Mubeen Rauf, a film director, seeking to regulate film reviews on online platforms by social media influencers and content creators.
The Association’s counsel produced a copy of the Indian Standard on Online Consumer Reviews - Principles and Requirements for their Collection Moderation and Publication published by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The counsel submitted that the Union government should act based on this publication. The Centre, however, informed the court that it would look into the matter and sought two weeks time to file a reply.
The court observed that reviews by anonymous persons may present opportunities for an individual to act maliciously with the intent to blackmail or extort. It made the observation when the amicus curiae in the case brought to the notice of the court that contents were being published by anonymous persons on social media, using fictional names and operating without any credentials. This by itself is a crime under the provisions of the Information Technology Act.