The government has ordered Internet service providers to block access to 67 pornographic websites following court orders and for violation of the Information Technology (IT) Rules, 2021.
The Department of Telecom (DoT), in an email, has asked Internet service providers to block 63 websites based on the order of a Pune court, and four websites based on the order of the Uttarakhand High Court.
The DoT has cited rule 3(2)(b) of the IT Rules, which empower any individual to seek takedown of content on an intermediary that is “in the nature of any material which exposes the private area of such individual”.
"MeitY in compliance of the said (Uttarakhand High court) order read along with rule 3(2)(b) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, and in view of certain obscene material available in the below mentioned website that tarnish the image of modesty of women, has directed to immediately take down (block) the ... websites/URLs," the DoT order dated September 24 stated.
Rule 3(2)(b) of the IT Rules states that the intermediary will within 24 hours from the receipt of a complaint “in relation to any content which is prima facie in the nature of any material which exposes the private area of such individual, shows such individual in full or partial nudity or shows or depicts such individual in any sexual act or conduct, or is in the nature of impersonation in an electronic form, including artificially morphed images of such individual, take all reasonable and practicable measures to remove or disable access to such content which is hosted, stored, published or transmitted by it”.
"Kindly find the attached Judicial Magistrate First Class, Court No. 6, Pune, Maharashtra order dated 23-09-2022...forwarded by Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY)...for necessary action with respect following Sixty-Three (63) websites/URLs mentioned in the court order," another order added.
The order directed Internet service providers to “immediately block the access to these Websites/Urls” and that “the compliance be submitted immediately”.
