WhatsApp group admin will be held responsible if members forward any hate or fake message on COVID-19
MUMBAI: The Maharashtra State Cyber Cell has advised the Group admin of WhatsApp group to be careful and be safe while its members post any forwarded messages on the group related to COVID-19. The cyber police have asked the Group Admin to change the settings to Admin mode only. This will ensure that the admin will only can post any message and without his knowledge no members in the group can post any forward that is related to spreading communal hate, fake rumours and misleading information related to COVID-19. Also it is advised that if there is multiple admin then it should be changed to a single admin.
State Cyber Deputy Inspector General Harish Baijal on Wednesday posted a video alerting all the WhatsApp Group Admins to change its settings. “The idea behind asking the admin to change settings is, it will act as a filter when the forwarded messages are posted by the members. Because many times the admin is innocent but due to the act of members he or she may fall into trouble. The admin changing the setting to ‘Admin only’ will help in keeping a check on the members while forwarding any message. The members should first sent the message personally to the admin who will post only after he or she verifies and check the authenticities,” said Baijal.
From Tuesday, WhatsApp has disabled forwarding to many users any frequently forwarded message. “The consequences of spreading fake news the admins of WhatsApp group as well as the users posting such objectionable content will be punished under section 153A & B of IPC punishes offenses related to promoting enmity between different groups and will be punished with imprisonment from three to five years as well as fine and other serious sections,” said State Cyber superintendent of police Balsing Rajput.
Advisory
WHAT YOU SHOULD DO AS A MEMBER OF GROUPS IN MESSAGING PLATFORMS
• Do not post fake news, hate speech or misinformation in groups
• Do not further forward or circulate any such news you get from other members of the group
• Immediately delete any post, if you find it objectionable or the admin notified you
• Check the source and veracity of any news/image/video/meme you receive, before positing it on the group
• Never share any content that is violent, pornographic and discriminative against any religion/community.
WHAT YOU SHOULD DO AS AN ADMIN OF MESSAGING PLATFORMS
• Ensure that every group member is reliable and responsible enough to share only verified news
• Inform all the group members about the rules of posting in the group
• Warn all the members and prevent them from sharing objectionable content
• Actively and regularly monitor content that is being shared on the group
• It is advisable that if the group is uncontrollable, then the group settings can be changed to only where admins have the right to post
• Inform the police if any members resort to mischief and share objectionable content
