Govt seeks legal opinion for action over Grok-generated obscene content

THe ministry of electronics and info technology (MeitY) is seeking sound view for process against X o'er obscene and sexually explicit content generated using its AI tool Grok, people aware of the matter said.On January 2, MeitY wrote a letter to X flagging what it called serious failures in preventing such content, warning that continued non-compliance could lead to the loss of legal protection under the Indian law.An official said the “opposite side” is very big and powerful, which is why their stand has to be unambiguous. “The law of the land must prevail,” said the official, adding that the same approach would apply to other platforms if their AI bots generate unlawful content. “In Grok’s case, the impact is accelerated because it operates on a platform like X.”Officials said the ministry has made it clear that Grok cannot be treated as a neutral platform tool. “The mindset has now changed. Earlier, they were operating from a higher position, but we have brought the issue down to the level of the law. Grok cannot be treated as a platform. It is a content creator, an artificial content creator. Just as I am a human content creator, Grok is an artificial one,” the official said.MeitY has told X that it is not satisfied with the company’s response to the government’s January 2 letter. X submitted its reply on January 7.People familiar with internal discussions said the government has conveyed that X’s submission did not address the core concerns raised. One official described the reply as the company “essentially reproducing its own user policy across five pages and sending it to the ministry.”The first official quoted above said the ministry has now asked X to “categorically first explain what actions it has taken in response to the content generated by Grok,” including steps taken against offending content and users.The January 2 letter addressed to X’s Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) for India said Grok was being misused to create fake accounts to host, generate, publish, or share obscene images or videos of women in a derogatory or vulgar manner to indecently denigrate them.The ministry said the abuse was not limited to fake accounts and also involved legitimate photos and videos uploaded by women that were manipulated through AI prompts and synthetic outputs. It directed X to submit a detailed Action Taken Report, outlining technical measures for Grok, the role of the CCO, action taken against offending users and content, and systems to meet mandatory crime-reporting requirements.People aware of the matter said that in the days leading up to the January 2 letter, MeitY held discussions with X’s compliance teams over Grok’s responses to political and religious queries. They added that the sexually explicit and degrading content cited in the letter was not raised during those routine meetings.The ministry warned that failure to comply could result in the loss of intermediary immunity under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act and “strict legal consequences” against the platform, its responsible officers, and users. It asked X for a comprehensive technical and governance-level review of Grok to ensure it does not generate or promote unlawful or sexualised content.The January 2 letter followed a December 29 advisory from MeitY warning intermediaries that some social media content may violate decency and obscenity laws. An official had said there was a “general feeling that obscene content had increased and SSMIs [significant social media intermediaries] aren’t doing enough to control it.”