IMPORTANT: Maharashtra cyber cell issues Covid advisory for WhatsApp users & group admins

The Maharashtra government on Wednesday announced an advisory for WhatsApp Users and Admins during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to counter the growing cases of rumours and fake news that is creating an atmosphere of fear and suspicion among the citizens.

Forwarding and spreading of "false and mischievious news" would attract punitive action. Providing/forwarding misleading information related to the severity/magnitude of the epidemic which may lead to panic will be punished with imprisonment which may extend to one year or with fine, according to the new advisory released on April 8.

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The Advisory for WhatsApp users and Admins is as follows:

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Dos and Donts for Admins and Members of WhatsApp or other messaging platforms:

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO AS A MEMBER OF GROUPS IN MESSAGING PLATFORMS

• Do not post fake news, hate speech or misinformation in groups
• Do not further forward or circulate any such news you get from other members of the group
• Immediately delete any post, if you find it objectionable or the admin notified you
• Check the source and veracity of any news/image/video/meme you receive, before posting it on the group
• If you find any piece of misinformation, fake news or hate speech, report it on www.cybercrime.gov.in or to your nearest police station and also inform your group admin immediately.
• Never share any content that is violent, pornographic and discriminative against any religion/community.

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO AS AN ADMIN OF MESSAGING PLATFORMS

• Ensure that every group member is reliable and responsible enough to share only verified news
• Inform all the group members about the rules of posting in the group
• Warn all the members and prevent them from sharing objectionable content
• Actively and regularly monitor the content that is being shared on the group
• It is advisable that if the group is uncontrollable, then the group settings can be changed to only where admins have the right to post
• Inform the police if any members resort to mischief and share objectionable content

A day earlier, Facebook-owned WhatsApp had proactively disallowed the forwarding of frequently-forwarded messages to more than one person at a time, amid the Pandemic.