Report finds Meta ran ads promoting child sexual abuse material in India

The Tech Transparency Project (TTP) reported that Meta ran 332 advertisements featuring child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on Facebook and Instagram over the past 10 months, with 84 of these ads appearing in India. This report follows an Indian government directive to Meta to remove all such content. The TTP indicated that the majority of the ads (274) were identified in August 2026. In response to inquiries from the BBC, Meta stated, "We don't tolerate nudify apps or any kind of child exploitation, whether real or AI-generated." The report highlighted that some ads used manipulated images of real children, including a member of a European royal family. Despite being notified of these ads, TTP claims that several continued to run on Meta's platforms. Following the BBC's investigation, Indian agencies such as the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights are examining the situation. The distribution of CSAM is illegal in India, and Meta's policies prohibit ads that exploit or endanger children. Bhuwan Ribhu, founder of Just Rights for Children, criticized Meta for not adequately reporting CSAM to Indian authorities and has filed a petition in India's Supreme Court seeking mandatory reporting requirements for social media platforms. The TTP's report also noted that many ads directed users to AI image generation apps, suggesting they could be used to create CSAM. Meta has stated that it prohibits the promotion of such apps. Shikha Goel, director of the Cyber Security Bureau in Telangana, acknowledged the challenges posed by the ease of moving between platforms in tackling CSAM. The BBC's investigation found that some ads directed users to the messaging app Telegram, where CSAM could be purchased. Meta's ad moderation system relies on automation, and the company acknowledged that no system is perfect. TTP reported that new ads continued to appear even after notifying Meta of their findings.