Since 2015, the Committee to Protect Journalists in India observed more arrests and cases lodged against journalists under various legislations. Some of these include the Indian Penal Code 1860, Information Technology Act 2000 and The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. This marked the beginning of a new and dangerous era. There are also several cases that were lodged against journalists while they are reporting during the COVID-19 pandemic under the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.

The brief overview to the guide is intended to provide a concise, user-friendly, practical guidance for journalists and newsrooms seeking to understand their rights in India. It will be useful resource for journalists as it summarises their rights while reporting, given their role is an essential service and they support the important pillar of freedom of speech. It also highlights the offences they should be mindful of that can be used for arrest. This was produced by the Committee to Protect Journalists and the Thomson Reuters Foundation, with pro bono legal research provided by Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co. .

This report examines laws relating to online sexual exploitation and abuse (OSEA) in international law and standards, in regional law and standards with a focus on Europe, and in five focus countries: Kenya, Nigeria, India, the United States and the United Kingdom. We also highlight gaps and loopholes.

As conducted, the research examined the following issues: Definitions of the term OSEA; Laws addressing jurisdiction around OSEA crimes and cooperation among states; Laws concerning the right to freedom of expression or speech online and its relationship with OSEA; Laws concerning the right to privacy online and its relationship with OSEA; and laws concerning the regulation of digital service providers and platforms.

The report also features expert testimony and utilizes a survivor centric approach to illustrate the impact of OSEA and highlight the challenges faced in keeping people safe in a rapidly changing digital landscape.

The full report is a publication by Equality Now, with design and publication support from the Thomson Reuters Foundation and Practical Law (Thomson Reuters).