India warns Meta of action over child abuse ads on Instagram; seeks response within seven days

According to CNBC, India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology issued a “stern notice” to Meta over the presence of Child Sexual Exploitative & Abuse Material (CSEAM) in paid advertisements on Instagram, directing the platform to immediately disable ads and content promoting child abuse and to provide a detailed explanation within seven days, DD News reported. The warning followed a BBC investigation that said Instagram was running paid advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material in India; Meta did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment. CNBC also reported that WhatsApp was issued a warning last week over its planned rollout of a username feature, which the government said could increase cybercrime incidents, and was directed to pause its plans; Meta defended the feature as a privacy measure.