‘Algos, if infringing on rights of citizens, must be dealt with’

There is a need to look into the algorithms of social media intermediaries if these go against the law or are in breach of Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar said Monday.

“These are all areas we need to discuss publicly. Algorithms that infringe on Articles 14, 19, and 21 of any citizen are still an infringement. Our main job is to protect the right to free speech, privacy, and the right to non-discrimination online just as the government does offline,” Chandrasekhar said at the launch of the frequently asked questions (FAQ) on part two of the Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code, also known as the Information Technology Rules, 2021.