Delhi HC Asks Social Media Platforms To Submit SOPs For Furnishing Info To Police

The Delhi High Court (HC) has directed social media platforms to submit details about their standard operating procedures (SOPs) while responding to requests for information from law enforcement agencies.

“The platforms shall place on the next date, their standard operating protocol for dealing with requests for information from law enforcement agencies including the timelines,” it said in a recent order.

In the order, dated September 20, the HC bench noted that the “time lag” between police seeking information and receipt of such information from social media platforms is impeding the process of tracing missing persons.

Subsequently, the bench, comprising Justice Prathiba Singh and Justice Amit Sharma, directed all major intermediaries, including Google, Meta, Reddit, X, Telegram and LinkedIn, to furnish details about their SOPs for requests from law enforcement agencies and timeline for providing such data. 

The HC also directed the Delhi Police’s counsel to hold a meeting with concerned police officials and place a note before the court on “any challenges” faced by enforcement agencies and training required by them.

“In order to ensure that such delay and lag does not impede the process of tracing out missing persons who are sometimes even children and minors, it is necessary that proper timelines ought to be adhered to by the concerned online platforms and their concerned officials. It is also necessary that the IOs (investigating officers) are also properly acclimatised to the manner in which requests ought to be posted, how the portal is to be monitored and immediately upon receipt how the same is to be downloaded from these platforms,” read the order.

The directions came as the HC was hearing a habeas corpus writ petition filed by the parents of a missing child. The Delhi Police contended before the HC that it had sought information about the Instagram handle of the missing child from Meta but the said data was not supplied by the platform. 

During the hearing, Meta counsel Tejas Karia said that the information was later furnished to the said agency on the morning of the hearing. Karia also said that there are “usually” training programmes for law enforcement agencies to access the portal functions for seeking the said information. 

The HC said that the delay in furnishing such information was noticed in other cases as well. The bench then listed the matter for next hearing on October 8.

Notably, this is not the first time that social media platforms have landed in the crosshairs of Indian authorities. While Google has been grappling with antitrust fines, Meta has been under fire from the government for failure to crack down on fake news and misinformation.

Besides, social media platforms have also been pulled up by authorities for failure to comply with takedown orders or effectively crack the whip on content related to child sexual exploitation and terrorism.