Synthetically Generated Information Labelling Duty for Intermediaries

Rule 3(3), inserted into the Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code Rules, 2021 by amendment notified 10 February 2026, applies where an intermediary offers a computer resource which may enable, permit, or facilitate the creation, generation, modification, alteration, publication, transmission, sharing, or dissemination of information as synthetically generated information.

Such an intermediary must ensure that any such information not falling within a listed prohibited category (such as child sexual exploitative material or content falsely depicting a real person or event) is prominently labelled, in the visual display or by a prefixed audio disclosure, so a viewer can immediately identify it as synthetically generated.

It must also embed that information with permanent metadata or another technical provenance mechanism, including a unique identifier, to the extent technically feasible. The intermediary must not enable removal, suppression or modification of that label or metadata.

"Synthetically generated information" is defined as audio, visual or audio-visual information artificially or algorithmically created, generated, modified or altered using a computer resource so that it appears real, authentic or true, subject to listed exclusions for routine or good-faith editing, formatting and accessibility work. This provision has applied since its own notification date, 10 February 2026, under the parent Rules' own commencement clause.