India warns social media after airline bomb threats
India has warned social media platforms of 'consequential action' after hundreds of hoax bomb threats to Indian airlines this month triggered travel chaos and terror it said threatened national security.
These threats have disrupted air travel, caused widespread alarm, and, according to the government, posed significant risks to national security.
Some of these incidents led to planes being diverted to locations as distant as Canada and Germany, with fighter jets being deployed to escort flights over areas like the UK and Singapore.
The Indian government described the spread of these threats as "dangerously unrestrained" and called on social media companies to promptly remove any misinformation. It stated that legal consequences might follow if platforms do not comply with these instructions.
'These malicious acts, in the form of hoax bomb threats, present a potential risk to public order and the security of the state,' the government said in an official statement released on Saturday.
These false threats, affecting large numbers of travelers, have also been flagged as detrimental to the country's economic stability. According to the Press Trust of India, at least 275 such threats were recorded since mid-October, although some local sources suggest the actual count could be closer to 400.
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