"The safety of our children and their freedom are not at odds with each other. Our children are entitled to both," the bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Chandran said in an order.
The apex court was examining reports on alleged paid promotion of child sexual exploitative and abuse material (CSEAM) through redirect links and websites on social media platforms.
Furthermore, the top court observed that denying children internet access altogether would be unreasonable, stressing that protecting them from online harm must go hand in hand with safeguarding their fundamental rights.
Why blanket age-based internet bans could backfire
The Supreme Court also cautioned that age-based restrictions could have unintended consequences, potentially pushing children towards unregulated and more dangerous websites.
Children who are enticed or threatened online may also hesitate to report such incidents to their parents or trusted adults if they fear punishment for violating internet restrictions, the court warned.
Supreme Court's guidelines to Centre, platforms
The Supreme Court also issued detailed directions to the Centre and the internet and social media platforms to bolster the detection and removal of explicit material. The top court directed Centre to frame guidelines for national databases of perceptual hashes and URLs, which would help platforms identify matching material across services and improve coordinated detection and removal.
It, however, added that such systems must have safeguards against wrongful deletion. Multiple safeguards and verification must precede before removing such content or adding it to the matching database after one complaint. The framework should also provide a grievance redressal mechanism for cases wherein an incorrect hash match or URL is flagged.
It added that hash and URL databases must not be repurposed to detect or remove other kinds of material.
Supreme Court flags gaps in online child safety measures
Raising alarm over the continued circulation of CSEAM online despite existing guidelines, it pulled up regulatory authorities and social media intermediaries for failing to take earnest steps to protect victims.
It said that the existing mechanism for reporting and removal remains largely dependent on individual complaints. Moreover, the same content is not automatically flagged on other platforms when one platform detects and removes it, delaying its removal and continuing its circulation online.
Court calls for faster removal of child sexual abuse material
It called for a stricter framework to tackle online sexual abuse, including faster detection and removal of child sexual abuse material across digital platforms. The top court said that it couldn't afford to wait any longer for an effective response from authorities and platforms.