See Full Document Text
[TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE GAZETTE OF INDIA, EXTRAORDINARY, PART II,
SECTION 3, SUB-SECTION (i)]
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
NOTIFICATION
New Delhi, the ____th March, 2026
G.S.R. ____(E).—In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1), clauses (z) and (zg)
of sub-section (2) of section 87 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (21 of 2000), the Central
Government hereby makes the following rules to further amend the Information Technology
(Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, namely:—
1. Short Title and Commencement.—(1) These rules may be called the Information
Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Second Amendment Rules,
2026.
(2) They shall come into force on the ____ th day of _____, 2026.
2. In the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code)
Rules, 2021 (hereafter referred to as the said rules), in rule 3, in sub-rule (1),⎯
(a) in clause (g), before the words, brackets and letter “where upon receiving actual
knowledge under clause (d)”, the words and punctuation “without prejudice to any
requirement relating to the preservation or retention of information applicable to
intermediaries under the Act or any other law for the time being in force,” shall be
inserted.
(b) in clause (h), before the words “where an intermediary collects information from a
user for registration on the computer resource”, the words and punctuation “without
prejudice to any requirement relating to the preservation or retention of information
applicable to intermediaries under the Act or any other law for the time being in
force,” shall be inserted.
3. In the said rules, in rule 3, after sub-rule (3), the following sub-rules shall be inserted,
namely:—
“(4) Compliance with Clarifications, Advisories and Directions issued by the Ministry:
(a) An intermediary shall comply with and give effect to any clarification, advisory, order,
direction, standard operating procedure, code of practice or guideline issued by the Ministry,
by order in writing, in relation to the implementation, interpretation or operationalisation of
the requirements prescribed under this Part;
(b) every such clarification, advisory, order, direction, standard operating procedure, code
of practice or guideline referred to in clause (a) shall—
(i) be issued in writing;
(ii) clearly specify the statutory provision or legal basis under which it is
issued;(iii) specify the scope, applicability and compliance requirements in respect
of the intermediary or class of intermediaries to whom it applies; and
(iv) be consistent with the provisions of the Act and these rules;
(c) compliance with any clarification, advisory, order, direction, standard operating
procedure, code of practice or guideline issued under clause (a) shall form part of the due
diligence obligations of the intermediary under section 79 of the Act.”.
4. In the said rules, in rule 8, in sub-rule (1), for the proviso, the following proviso shall be
substituted, namely:—
“Provided that for the purposes of rules 14, 15 and 16, the rules made under
this Part shall apply to—
(a) intermediaries; and
(b) news and current affairs content hosted, displayed, uploaded, modified,
published, transmitted, stored, updated or shared on the computer resources
of the intermediaries by users who are not publishers.”.
5. In the said rules, in rule 14,—
(a) for sub-rule (2), the following sub-rule shall be substituted, namely:—
“(2) The Committee shall meet periodically and hear the matters—
(a) arising out of the grievances relating to violation of the Code of
Ethics by the publishers, in respect of the decisions taken at the
Level I or II, including the cases where no such decision is taken
within the time specified in the grievance redressal mechanism;
or
(b) referred to it by the Ministry.”.
(b) in sub-rule (5), for the words and punctuations “complaints or grievances, and
may either accept or allow such complaint or grievance, and make the following
recommendations to the Ministry,”, the words and punctuation “the matter and
make the following recommendations to the Ministry,” shall be substituted.
[F. No. 2(5)/2025-CyberLaws]
AJIT KUMAR, Joint Secretary
Note: The principal rules were published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3,
Sub-section (i), vide notification number G.S.R. 139(E), dated the 25th February, 2021 and
subsequently amended vide notification number G.S.R. 794(E), dated the 28th October, 2022; G.S.R.
275(E), dated the 6th April, 2023; G.S.R. 775(E), dated the 22nd October, 2025; and G.S.R. 120(E),
dated the 10th February, 2026.