Philippines secures Meta pledge for quicker deepfake removals, child‑abuse data access

Manila, Aug 28 - The Philippine government and Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, have reached an agreement to enhance cooperation in combating harmful AI-generated content, particularly deepfakes and online child abuse. The commitment was announced on Friday by Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Centre (CICC) Executive Director Undersecretary Renato "Aboy" Paraiso, during a meeting with Philippine officials and Meta's regional executives in Singapore.

The collaboration aims to integrate measures from the proposed expanded online safety legislation, expected to pass soon, before its enactment. Paraiso expressed optimism about the high level of cooperation, stating that it would lead to faster coordination, more effective investigations, and better protection for Filipinos, especially children and vulnerable internet users.

The agreement includes a stronger mechanism for addressing AI-generated content, with Meta agreeing to collaborate with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), CICC, and other law enforcement agencies to identify AI-generated content that requires immediate removal. Meta also committed to providing user credentials and relevant data in response to lawful requests from Philippine authorities investigating cybercrime and other online threats, such as online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC), child sexual abuse and exploitation material (CSAEM), and obscene content.

Once the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) issues a subpoena, Meta will promptly provide the requested data. The government had previously considered banning Meta in the Philippines if the platform failed to implement stricter protections for children. However, following the agreement, the plan to ban was put on hold, as concrete areas of cooperation are now in place, aiming to improve online safety for Filipinos, particularly children, ahead of the proposed legislation.