Govt proposes new IT rules: All AI-generated content may need clear labels and traceable markers

The government has proposed amendments to its information technology rules that would require clear labelling and metadata markers on AI-generated or “synthetically generated” content.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) said the draft changes to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, seek to strengthen accountability among social media intermediaries and platforms that enable the creation or distribution of synthetic media.

Under the proposed rules, all AI-generated content would need to carry visible or audible labels identifying it as synthetic. The label must cover at least 10% of a visual display or be heard during the first 10% of an audio clip’s duration.

The platforms will also be required to embed permanent metadata within such files to help users and authorities trace their origin.

The draft amendments also mandate significant social media intermediaries (SSMIs) to obtain declarations from users uploading AI-generated material and deploy “reasonable technical measures” to verify such disclosures.

The move follows growing concerns over the misuse of deepfake technology to spread misinformation, manipulate elections, commit fraud, or create non-consensual intimate imagery.

“With the increasing availability of generative AI tools and the resulting proliferation of synthetically generated information (commonly known as deepfakes), the potential for misuse of such technologies to cause user harm, spread misinformation, manipulate elections, or impersonate individuals has grown significantly,” the ministry said in a public notice.

The proposed rules define “synthetically generated information” as information that is artificially or algorithmically created or altered using computer resources in a manner that appears reasonably authentic or true.

The ministry said the amendments are intended to promote user awareness and traceability while maintaining “an enabling environment for innovation in AI-driven technologies.”

The draft also provides legal protection to intermediaries that act in good faith to remove or disable access to deepfake or misleading AI-generated content.

Stakeholders have been invited to submit feedback on the draft rules by November 6, after which the government is expected to finalise the amendments.