According to a top official, the Indian government has ordered Meta to immediately block Instagram ads and content that support or encourage child sexual assault. It comes after a BBC Eye investigation discovered that Instagram had been running paid advertisements in India that promoted content about child sexual assault, some of which directed users to Telegram groups where the content was for sale.
According to the official, the government has also requested an explanation within a week regarding how ads with such content were permitted on the platform. According to Meta, it has a zero-tolerance policy for content that depicts child sexual abuse and is working to improve its detection and defenses. In 2026, Telegram reported that it has eliminated over 274,000 groups and channels that contained content of child sexual assault.A top source in India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology told the BBC that Meta has received a severe warning from the government on child sexual exploitation and abuse content that appears in sponsored Instagram ads.
The federal ministry “ordered Instagram to disable all ads and content promoting or facilitating access” to such content, according to the source.Within seven days, the government has asked Meta for a thorough explanation,” the person continued.
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