India seeks info on tech, processes used by Facebook

New Delhi: India has begun a probe seeking details about the algorithms being used by Facebook, following revelations alleging that the social media giant’s systems can fuel hate speech and fake news, people in the know of developments told ET.

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Electronics and IT ( MeitY) shot off a letter to Facebook India’s managing director Ajit Mohan seeking information on the processes followed by the American Big Tech company to moderate content on its platform and the methods employed to prevent harm to online users, the sources said. The missive follows recent revelations by whistle blower Frances Haugen that have “ “alarmed” the government, specifically with regard to the so-called India experiment, where a dummy user’s feed was filled with fake news and hate speech within three weeks of opening an account, they added.