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LITERATURE REVIEW

WHAT DOES THE INFORMATION

TECHNOLOGY (IT) RULES, 2021

MEAN TO US? - A REVIEW

Prof. Jeremiah Justus. M

What are the IT rules, 2021 which was recently passed by the Government
What are the IT rules, 2021 which was recently passed by the Government
of India (GoI)?
of India (GoI)?

The IT rules, 2021 are a follow-up to the Intermediary Guidelines and Dig-

ital Media ethics code passed in 2011 and later amended in 2018 by the
GoI. The IT rules, 2021 is a significant move from the GoI because for the

first time India has a regulatory mechanism for digital media usage & prop-
agation and Over-the-Top (OTT) broadcasting material.

Before the IT rules, 2021, didn’t the IT Act 2000 regulate digital media
Before the IT rules, 2021, didn’t the IT Act 2000 regulate digital media
propagation?
propagation?

The IT Act is a framework that the GoI legislated in 2000 to govern elec-
tronic commerce and to deal with cybercrime. But with the rise of fake

news, misuse of social media and OTT broadcast platforms, India needed a
regulation. The IT Act had a loophole where the intermediary (the person

who did not create the file but only passed it on) was considered a protect-
ed liability and therefore will go unpunished. The IT rules, 2021 addressed

this loophole.

What led to the passage of the IT
What led to the passage of the IT
rules, 2021?
rules, 2021?

In 2018, in a case relating to the

circulation of videos that included
explicit sexual violence and rape

(Prajwala vs. Union of India), the
Supreme court summoned the ASG,

India along with representatives of

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