"Issued notices to all social media platforms": Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on deep fake video case

Ashwini Vaishnaw, who interacted with the media on Saturday, said, "Deep fake is a big issue for all of us. We recently issued notices to all the big social media forms, asking them to take steps to identify deepfakes, for removing those content. The social media platforms have responded. They are taking action. We have told them to be more aggressive in this work."

"Also, we must notice that the 'Safe Harbour' Clause that most of the social media platforms have been enjoying, doesn't apply if the platforms do not take adequate steps to remove the deepfakes from their platforms," he added.

On November 6, a modified video of actress Rashmika Mandanna appeared online sparking discussions of digital safety. In the viral video, it can be seen that a woman resembling the actress Rashmika was entering a lift wearing a black swimsuit.

The video quickly went viral and several social media users came forward to confirm that it was a deep fake. It was later identified that the video was of a British Actress Zara Patel.

The actress strongly reacted to the alleged deep fake video and said, "I feel really hurt to share this and have to talk about the deep fake video of me being spread online. Something like this is honestly, extremely scary not only for me but also for each one of us who today is vulnerable to so much harm because of how technology is being misused."

The Delhi Police registered the FIR under relevant sections, and an investigation has been carried out into the matter.

Delhi Police said that a technical analysis is underway to identify the accused involved in the deepfake video case of the actress Rashmika Mandanna.

"We are doing the technical analysis and securing details from the Meta and other social media platforms to identify the accused," DCP Hemant Tiwari told ANI.

Police said that no accused has been arrested or detained till now in the case. (ANI)