Meta has denied allegations that it deliberately targeted users with advertisements linked to child sexual exploitation and abuse material (CSEAM), days after the Centre issued a notice seeking an explanation over such content appearing on Instagram.
In a blog post published on Tuesday, the company rejected the claims, saying, “It is categorically inaccurate to suggest that we’d knowingly and deliberately target ads featuring children to people based on an inappropriate interest in children.”
The response comes after the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) directed the company to immediately remove Instagram advertisements and content allegedly promoting or facilitating CSEAM.
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Meta outlines child safety measures
In its statement, Meta said it actively uses technology to identify suspicious activity involving children and has taken action against millions of accounts.
The company said it had automatically removed more than four million accounts in 2025 that showed potentially suspicious behaviour related to children.
“We’re aware of recent news reports about Instagram ads in India that violated our policies against child exploitation. And we want to be clear: we take these concerns seriously, we never want this content on our platforms, and we’re committed to improving our efforts to combat it,” said Meta, while detailing its advertising review process and child safety enforcement measures.
Meta also said it had started acting against several violating advertisements even before the issue was highlighted publicly. “Before these cases were brought to our attention, our enforcement systems had already identified and disabled several of the violating ads and the accounts behind them,” it said.
BBC report triggered government action
The Centre’s notice followed a BBC Eye investigation that reported finding around 30 Instagram advertisements allegedly promoting child sexual abuse material. According to the report, some ads contained phrases such as “rape video” and “child video” and directed users to Telegram channels allegedly selling such material.
Following the report, MeitY asked Meta to remove the content immediately and submit a detailed explanation by July 11 on how the advertisements appeared on the platform.
A government official said the latest blog post does not replace the formal response sought by the ministry.
Company admits challenges remain
Meta said its investigation after the BBC findings resulted in additional removals, including advertisements, accounts and URLs linked to policy-violating content.
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The company also highlighted that AI-powered detection tools helped remove 160,000 accounts in India over the past six months.
Acknowledging that moderation systems are not foolproof, Meta said, “We recognise that no system is perfect and that determined criminals will continue to try to exploit our platform, including through our advertising systems.”
It added, “Our review process may not catch every violation, but we’re continuously working to stay ahead of bad actors through our robust ad review process.”
FAQs:
Why did the Centre issue a notice to Meta?
Following a BBC report, the Centre sought an explanation over Instagram ads allegedly promoting child sexual abuse material.
What has Meta said in response?
Meta denied knowingly allowing such ads and said it had already removed violating content and accounts using its enforcement systems.
