New Delhi: The Centre has issued a stern notice to Elon Musk-owned social media platform X, directing it to immediately remove and curb the circulation of obscene and sexually explicit content generated through its AI chatbot Grok, escalating regulatory scrutiny over the misuse of artificial intelligence on digital platforms. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has sought a detailed compliance report within 72 hours, warning of strict legal action if lapses continue.
In its communication to X’s chief compliance officer, the Ministry said it had observed several instances where Grok was allegedly used to generate morphed, sexualised and indecent images of women, including content that could violate laws related to child protection. The government described the issue as a serious failure of platform-level safeguards and said such content undermines the dignity, privacy and safety of users.
Officials pointed out that as an intermediary operating in India, X is required to exercise due diligence under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the IT Rules, 2021. The notice said the continued availability of unlawful content could attract provisions of multiple statutes, including laws dealing with obscenity, indecent representation of women and child sexual abuse material.
The Ministry has directed X to take immediate steps to disable access to such content, strengthen Grok’s safety guardrails and moderation mechanisms, and conduct a thorough audit of the chatbot’s design, prompts and output systems. It has also asked the platform to submit an action taken report detailing the remedial measures adopted and enforcement action initiated against violators.
Government sources said failure to comply could lead to the withdrawal of safe harbour protection under Section 79 of the IT Act, which shields intermediaries from liability for third-party content, potentially exposing X and its officials to direct legal consequences.
The notice follows growing public and political concern over the misuse of generative AI tools on social media platforms. Several users and lawmakers have flagged instances of AI-generated sexualised images circulating widely, triggering calls for stronger accountability from technology companies deploying such tools.
Globally too, Grok has come under scrutiny after reports suggested that inadequate safeguards allowed the generation of inappropriate content, renewing debates around AI ethics, platform responsibility and user safety. While X has not issued a detailed public response in India so far, the government’s move signals a tougher stance on AI-driven content and a clear message that emerging technologies will be expected to comply with existing legal frameworks.
BU Bureau
