Indian Government Orders X to Address AI-Generated Obscene Content on Grok
The Indian government's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology issued a notice to X Corp on January 2, 2026, alleging that the Grok AI chatbot is being misused to generate and distribute obscene and sexually explicit content targeting women and children. The ministry demanded that X submit an action plan within 72 hours and warned of legal consequences including loss of platform protections under Indian law if non-compliance continues.
What happened
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued a formal notice to X Corp on January 2, 2026, alleging that Grok AI, integrated into the X platform, is being misused to generate and circulate obscene, sexually explicit and derogatory content targeting women and children.
The ministry stated that Grok is allegedly being misused to create fake accounts and generate synthetic images and videos of women in a vulgar and degrading manner through prompts, image manipulation and AI-generated outputs, pointing to a 'serious failure' of platform-level safeguards and enforcement mechanisms.
Reported impact
The ministry raised concerns that the practices violate the dignity, privacy and safety of women and children, normalise sexual harassment and exploitation in digital spaces, and undermine the statutory due diligence framework applicable to intermediaries operating in India.
Index analysis
MeitY noted that such content violates Indian laws relating to decency and obscenity, and that X is not adequately complying with its statutory due diligence obligations under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
Governance controls
The ministry directed X to submit a detailed Action Taken Report within 72 hours, conduct a comprehensive review of Grok's technical and governance frameworks, enforce strict user policies including suspension and termination of violators, and immediately remove all offending content.
Non-compliance could result in loss of safe harbour protection under Section 79 of the IT Act and penal action under the BNS, the Indecent Representation of Women Act, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.