Remove hoax bomb threats, report users behind them: IT Ministry to social media companies

It has also asked the companies to share information about such posts and users with the government within 72 hours, as laid down in the Information Technology (IT) Rules, 2021. Under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, companies also have a responsibility to mandatorily report certain offences committed by users of their platforms that could threaten India’s national security and economic interests.

“…the IT Rules, 2021 obligates the intermediaries to provide information under its control or possession, or assistance to the government… for the purposes of verification of identity, or for the prevention, detection, investigation, or prosecution, of offences under any law for the time being in force, or for cyber security incidents, well within the stipulated time frames (as soon as possible but not later than 72 hours),” the advisory said.

“…multiple hoax bomb threats have been received by various airlines operating in India through various means including social media intermediaries during the last few days. Airline travellers and security agencies are being affected due to such hoax bomb threats that disrupt the normal course of operations of the airlines,” the ministry said in its advisory.

Indian airliners, including Air India, Indigo, Spicejet and Akasa Air have received more than 250 such threats in the last 11 days, following which they have complained to the government of such threats coming from anonymous social media handles. Although most bomb threats turn out to be fake, airlines as well as aviation authorities globally take them with utmost seriousness. If initiated, the post-landing security checks often take a few hours and result in disruptions like delays and even rescheduling of the remainder of the flight in some cases, all of which hit the airlines financially.

“The instances of malicious acts in the form of hoax bomb threats to such airlines lead to potential threat to the public order and security of the state. Such hoax bomb threats while affecting a large number of citizens also destabilise the economic security of the country,” the IT Ministry said in its advisory.

“Further, the scale of spread of such hoax bomb threats has been observed to be dangerously unrestrained due to the availability of the option of ‘forwarding/re-sharing/ re-posting/ re-tweeting’ on social media platforms. Such hoax bomb threats are mostly misinformation that is massively disrupting the public order, operations of airlines and security of the airline travellers,” it added.

Government agencies are also learnt to be in touch with social media platforms and virtual private network (VPN) service providers to trace and nab those behind these threats.

“…there is an additional liability on concerned intermediaries under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 to mandatorily report certain offences perceived to be committed by any user of their platform that includes, among others, any act with the intent to threaten or likely to threaten the unity, integrity, sovereignty, security, or economic security of India,” the advisory noted.