Google and Meta Resist Court Recording Upload Blocking

New Delhi – Tech giants Google and Meta have formally opposed a petition before the Delhi High Court (HC) that seeks to compel social media intermediaries to proactively detect and block unauthorized recordings of court proceedings. Both companies have submitted affidavits stating the demand is legally unsupportable and practically impossible to fulfill.

The case stems from a petition filed after recordings of a court hearing were widely shared on social media. The petitioner seeks to impose an obligation on platforms to prevent the upload, re-upload, and dissemination of such recordings, with penalties for non-compliance. This raises fundamental questions about intermediary liability and content moderation in India.

Google has argued that it cannot ascertain the legality of recordings as they are created outside its platforms. The company states it can only act on specific URLs identified and adjudicated as unlawful by a court, citing the "Shreya Singhal v. Union of India" judgment which requires actual knowledge of unlawful content via a court order. Similarly, Meta contends that a proactive monitoring mandate would violate Section 79 of India's Information Technology Act (IT Act), which provides safe harbor protections for platforms.

Legal experts have noted that imposing a general monitoring obligation might exceed existing legal frameworks and constitute judicial law-making. While courts possess broad powers, a perpetual duty to monitor all future uploads could be seen as an impermissible expansion of intermediary duties beyond Section 79.

The ongoing case highlights a tension between the judiciary's need to maintain dignity and control over its proceedings and the technical and legal limitations faced by online platforms. The outcome could set a precedent for intermediary liability concerning sensitive court content.