Meta defends child safety systems amid Instagram CSEAM scrutiny

NEW DELHI: When trust is on trial, every safeguard comes under the spotlight. Meta has defended its child safety and advertising enforcement systems after facing scrutiny over reports that Instagram allegedly carried advertisements linked to child sexual exploitation and abuse material (CSEAM) in India, insisting it has a zero-tolerance approach to such content and that many of the offending advertisements had already been removed before they were flagged publicly.

In a detailed blog post published on Tuesday, the company said it takes concerns around child exploitation “seriously” and does not knowingly allow such content on its platforms. The clarification comes amid growing questions over whether Meta’s advertising review systems were adequately preventing policy-violating advertisements from reaching users. 

According to Meta, several of the offending advertisements and the accounts behind them had already been identified and disabled by its enforcement systems before the issue came to light. A subsequent investigation led to the removal of additional advertisements, the disabling of more accounts and the blocking of URLs linked to policy-violating content. The company also rejected suggestions that it intentionally targeted advertisements featuring children at users with inappropriate interests.

“It is categorically inaccurate to suggest that we’d knowingly and deliberately target ads featuring children to people based on an inappropriate interest in children,” Meta said, adding that it automatically disabled more than four million suspicious Facebook and Instagram accounts globally last year.

Meta said its advertising review process combines automated detection with human review before advertisements go live, while continuing to monitor advertisers and business accounts after publication. Advertisements remain subject to ongoing review and can be removed at any stage if they are found to violate the company’s advertising policies or Community Standards.

Reiterating its zero-tolerance policy, the company said advertisements containing content that sexually exploits or endangers children are strictly prohibited under its advertising standards.

Meta also outlined the scale of its broader enforcement efforts. The company said it removed more than 36 million pieces of child exploitation-related content globally last year and disabled over four million suspicious accounts across Facebook and Instagram.

In India, Meta said its AI-powered detection systems removed around 160,000 accounts over the past six months after identifying suspicious off-platform links and other indicators associated with child exploitative activity. Between October and December 2025, the company removed 13 million pieces of child sexual exploitation content across Facebook and Instagram worldwide, with more than 96 per cent detected proactively before being reported by users.

Meta said suspected child exploitation cases are reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which forwards relevant reports to India’s National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal in accordance with the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Information Technology Rules.

The company also highlighted its participation in wider industry initiatives, including the Tech Coalition’s Lantern programme, which enables platforms to share intelligence on predatory accounts, and its support for NCMEC’s Take It Down tool, designed to help prevent the online circulation of intimate images involving minors.

The clarification comes as Meta remains under regulatory scrutiny in India following allegations that criminals exploited Instagram’s advertising systems to promote CSEAM. The controversy has intensified calls for stronger safeguards around digital advertising, even as Meta maintains that it will continue investing in AI-driven detection, strengthening its review systems and working with law enforcement agencies to combat online child exploitation.