The government has directed Internet service providers (ISP) to block distribution and transmission of child sexual abuse content by 31 July.
"ISP's having cable landing station gateways/ international long distance licences in India shall be required to adopt and implement IWF (Internet Watch Foundation) resources on or before 31 July, 2017, to prevent distribution and transmission of online CSAM in to India," the Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity) said in an order dated 18 April, 2017.
The directive has been issued after the recommendation of an inter-ministerial committee that was constituted to recommend solutions to address the issue of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) following a Supreme Court order.
The ministry (Meity) has asked all the ISPs to continue to observe the existing due diligence requirements prescribed by the central government under the Information Technology Act 2000 and rules and regulations.
The publication or transmission of material depicting children in sexually explicit act or conduct in electronic form is heinous crime, specifically prohibited by section 67B of the IT Act 2000.
The Supreme Court in an order dated 12 July, 2013, had directed the government to tackle the CSAM issue.
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