Centre warns social media influencers against promoting offshore betting, gambling platforms and surrogate advertisements

The government has on Thursday, March 21, warned all endorsers and social media influencers to not promote or advertise offshore online betting and gambling platforms, including through surrogates.

According to an advisory issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, these advertisements have significant financial and socioeconomic implications for consumers, particularly young people, who engage in online betting and gambling.

According to an official statement, the Ministry has also advised online advertising intermediaries not to target such promotional content at Indian audiences.

It also advised social media intermediaries to educate their users on the importance of not publishing such content.

The advisory warns that failure to comply with it may result in proceedings under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, including the removal or disablement of social media posts or accounts and penal action under the applicable statutes.

Advisory for celebrities and influencers endorsing surrogate advertisements of offshore online betting gambling platforms: Full advisory

The Ministry has issued Advisories from time to time for the media, including social media platforms, to refrain from publishing, broadcasting advertisements of online betting platforms and/or any such product/service depicting these platforms in a surrogate manner. The online advertisement intermediaries have also been advised not to target such advertisements towards the Indian audience.

2. The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), vide Advisory dated 06.03.2024 (copy enclosed), while referring to the predominant illegality of offshore online betting and gambling platforms in most regions across the country and provisions of the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements 2022, has expressed concerns regarding endorsements of such betting/gambling platforms by celebrities and influencers to endorse and promote their betting activities, and cautioned that any advertisement or endorsement, whether directly or indirectly, of activities which are otherwise prohibited by law, including but not limited to betting or gambling, through advertisements or promotions, shall be subject to rigorous scrutiny.

3. Section 79 of the IT Act, 2000 provides for exemption from liability of intermediaries for third party information, data, or communication link made available or hosted by them. Sub- section (3)(b) of section 79 provides that the exemption from liability shall not apply if upon receiving actual knowledge, or on being notified by the appropriate Government or its agency that any information, data or communication link residing in or connected to a computer resource controlled by the intermediary is being used to commit the unlawful act, the intermediary fails to expeditiously remove or disable access to that material on that resource without vitiating the evidence in any manner.

4. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, being the appropriate Government in respect of "Online Advertisements", is accordingly empowered to issue notifications to the intermediaries, including social media platforms, to remove/disable access to posts, links, etc. where advertisements and branded content of offshore online betting and gambling platforms is being published.

5. Based on the above provisions of law, and the significant financial and socio-economic implications of online betting and gambling on consumers, particularly the youth, the Ministry hereby strongly advises all endorsers and influencers on social media to refrain from showing such promotional content/advertisements, including surrogate advertisements, of offshore online betting and gambling platforms in any form whatsoever. While the online advertisement intermediaries are advised not to target such content towards Indian audience, the social media. intermediaries are advised to conduct sensitization efforts among their users to refrain from publishing such content.

6. It is hereby cautioned that failure to comply with the above may lead to proceedings under the provisions of Consumer Protection Act, 2019, removal/disabling of social media posts/accounts where such promotional content/advertisements/endorsements are being published, and penal action under the applicable statutes.