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India makes second-most user data requests to Facebook: reports

WION Web Team
New Delhi, Delhi, IndiaUpdated: May 13, 2020, 03:11 PM IST
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File photo: Photograph:(Reuters)

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The company could reject it or require more detail on the requests that appear vague.

After the United States, India has made the second-highest requests to Facebook for user data. These requests were made between July and December in 2019 as per Facebook's transparency report. 

According to the report, India made 26,698 requests for the data of 39,664 users and accounts. Out of them, Facebook complied with 57 per cent of these requests. These requests by the government have been on an all-time high ever since their 3,245 requests during the first six months of 2013. 

According to Facebook, it responds to government requests for the data according to their laws and terms of service. Every request goes through a rigorous review to check its legal sufficiency. The company could reject it or require more detail on the requests that appear vague.

Out of the total requests made by the Indian government (26,698), seven per cent were emergency-related where the law enforcement could submit requests without legal proceedings. 

Earlier, Facebook reportedly agreed to a $52 million court settlement to compensate content moderators who were required to view contents of the social media giant which caused them mental trauma, news agency AFP reported quoting plaintiff lawyers. 

The class-action lawsuit filed in 2018 claimed that the content reviewers were subject to psychological trauma from repeated exposure to graphic content such as child sexual abuse, beheadings, terrorism, animal cruelty, rape and murder.