World · India Bureau
Meta India Executive Faces Third Summons Over Child Abuse Ad Row
India's regulatory authorities have summoned Meta's India head for the third time in connection with advertisements allegedly promoting child sexual abuse material on Instagram. The case follows a major media investigation that exposed the platform's failure to prevent such content.
LSN India ·
Meta's India leadership has been called for questioning by authorities investigating how the social media giant's Instagram platform allowed advertisements promoting child sexual abuse material to be displayed to Indian users.
The summons marks the third occasion the company's top executive in the country has been asked to appear before investigators. The matter gained prominence after a BBC media investigation documented how the platform had been running advertisements linked to child exploitation content, raising serious questions about Meta's content moderation systems and child safety protocols.
The case has intensified scrutiny of Meta's operations in India, one of its largest markets by user base. Authorities are examining how such advertisements slipped through the platform's automated systems and human moderation teams, and what measures are in place to prevent recurrence.
Meta has previously acknowledged the findings and committed to strengthening its systems to combat child exploitation. However, the repeated summons suggest regulators remain unsatisfied with the company's responses and remedial actions so far.
The investigation forms part of a broader global reckoning with social media platforms over child safety, with multiple countries intensifying oversight of how these companies handle content related to the exploitation of minors.