Government evaluating robust legislation to oversee social media following Grok AI misuse, says Minister.

Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw commented that the recent activity of the AI tool Grok in creating inappropriate images of women highlights the need for government measures, mentioning that a law to oversee social media content is being considered.

He stated, “The Parliamentary Committee has suggested a robust law for social media regulation. We are evaluating it,” during an interview with CNBC-TV18, also noting that an advisory has been issued by the government on this issue.

On social media platform X, users have been requesting Grok to alter images of women and children into sexually explicit forms, which are then disseminated without permission.

In its first interview of 2026 on CNBC-TV18, the Ministry of Electronics and IT acknowledged the Grok issue and is prepared to take necessary steps.

Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi has brought this issue to the minister’s attention, urging him to stop such abuse of AI and to prioritize the safety of women.

She highlighted in a January 2 letter to Vaishnaw, “It is disturbing that Grok is facilitating this behavior by responding to such requests. This violates women’s privacy rights and involves unauthorized use of their images, which is both unethical and a criminal offense.”

The minister emphasized that the responsibility for online content lies not only with users but also with the social media platforms that host and promote such content. He insisted that these platforms must be accountable for what is published and shared through their systems.

In an automated reply, Grok asserted that it has enhanced its protections against misuse, claiming to have disabled the media feature utilized for image generation.

Despite backlash from activists and political figures, Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, continued to interact with the feature, sharing a newly generated image of himself.