Tracing originator of message won’t break encryption, says MeitY

The Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) has reiterated that its intent to track the first originator of messages of social media intermediaries will not break or weaken encryption.

This was clarified in the frequently asked questions (FAQs) released by Minister of State for MeitY Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Monday. The document explained the nuances of the due diligence to be followed by intermediaries as part of Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

In a question on detection of the first originator of the message in the messaging platforms compromising end-to-end encryption, MeitY has clarified that it is to “obtain the registration details of the first Indian originator of the message”.