UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Balancing innovation with women’s digital safety

Question 1

Which one of the following is the nodal ministry that released the India AI Governance Guidelines (2025) and notified the IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Amendment Rules, 2026 governing synthetically generated content?

Accepted Answer

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

Answer

Ministry of Home Affairs

Answer

Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

Answer

Ministry of Women and Child Development

Question 2

With reference to recent Indian instruments relevant to women's digital safety, consider the following statements:
1. The DPDP Rules, 2025 were notified on 14 November 2025, operationalising the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.
2. The IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Amendment Rules, 2026 came into force on 20 February 2026 and require intermediaries to remove unlawful content within three hours of a court order or reasoned government intimation.
3. Unlike the DPDP Rules, 2025, the IT Rules Amendment, 2026 establishes the Data Protection Board of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

1 and 3 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1, 2 and 3

Question 3

The DPDP Rules, 2025 — relevant to non-consensual use of women's personal data by deepfake tools — were framed exclusively to operationalise which one of the following enactments?

Accepted Answer

Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023

Answer

Information Technology Act, 2000

Answer

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023

Answer

Telecommunications Act, 2023

Question 4

The India AI Governance Guidelines (2025) recommend the creation of new national institutions. Consider the following:
1. AI Governance Group
2. Technology & Policy Expert Committee
3. AI Safety Institute
4. Data Protection Board of India
Which of the above is/are correctly identified as institutions recommended by the India AI Governance Guidelines?

Accepted Answer

1, 2 and 3

Answer

1 and 4 only

Answer

2, 3 and 4

Answer

1, 2, 3 and 4

Question 5

The India AI Governance Guidelines (2025) are anchored in exactly how many guiding 'sutras' (foundational principles)?

Accepted Answer

Seven

Answer

Five

Answer

Six

Answer

Nine

Question 6

The India AI Governance Guidelines 2026, released by MeitY under the IndiaAI Mission at the India AI Impact Summit, are organised around 'Seven Sutras.' Which of the following is identified as the FIRST and foundational sutra on which the entire framework rests?

Accepted Answer

Trust is the Foundation

Answer

People First

Answer

Innovation over Restraint

Answer

Safety, Resilience and Sustainability

Question 7

The India AI Governance Guidelines 2026 were drafted by a committee constituted in July 2025 and released under which mission by which nodal ministry?

Accepted Answer

IndiaAI Mission, under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)

Answer

National Data Governance Framework, under NITI Aayog

Answer

National AI Strategy, under the Department of Science and Technology

Answer

National Cyber Security Policy, under the Ministry of Home Affairs

Question 8

Under the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2026, what is the maximum time permitted for a social media intermediary to take down non-consensual intimate deepfake imagery after a complaint is received?

Accepted Answer

2 hours

Answer

1 hour

Answer

3 hours

Answer

6 hours

Question 9

The IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Amendment Rules, 2026 introduced the category 'Synthetically Generated Information (SGI).' Which of the following most precisely captures the definition of SGI as used in those Rules?

Accepted Answer

Audio, visual, or audio-visual content created or altered algorithmically to appear real or indistinguishable from a natural person or a real-world event

Answer

Any content produced by large language models that modifies factual information so as to constitute misinformation

Answer

Digitally manipulated content that lacks copyright protection because it was generated without direct human authorship

Answer

Machine-learning-generated content that violates the community standards published by a Significant Social Media Intermediary

Question 10

Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which of the following violations by a Data Fiduciary attracts the HIGHEST monetary penalty?

Accepted Answer

Failure to implement adequate security safeguards to prevent personal data breaches

Answer

Failure to notify the Data Protection Board and affected individuals of a personal data breach

Answer

Violation of obligations related to processing of children's personal data

Answer

Non-compliance with a Data Principal's lawful request for erasure of personal data

Question 11

As enumerated in a Rajya Sabha statement in August 2025, how many distinct sections of the Information Technology Act, 2000 are invoked to address deepfake-related offences in India?

Accepted Answer

Five

Answer

Three

Answer

Four

Answer

Seven

Question 12

In policy discourse on online violence against women, the term 'Non-Consensual Intimate Imagery (NCII)' specifically refers to:

Accepted Answer

The distribution or creation of intimate visual content — real, manipulated, or AI-generated — depicting a person without their consent

Answer

Any digital content that objectifies or stereotypes women without their participation in its creation, including targeted advertising

Answer

AI-generated deepfake images used exclusively for financial fraud or identity theft targeting women

Answer

Synthetic media that mimics a real person's voice or likeness for use in misleading public communications or electoral disinformation

Question 13

Which Supreme Court judgment is considered the PRIMARY constitutional basis for the right to privacy in India, subsequently relied upon to ground legal protections against non-consensual digital surveillance, deepfakes, and data misuse?

Accepted Answer

K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) v. Union of India (2017)

Answer

Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978)

Answer

Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997)

Answer

Shreya Singhal v. Union of India (2015)

Question 14

The Data Protection Board of India, established as a fully digital adjudicatory body under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, comprises how many members in total, with the stipulation that at least one member must be a legal expert?

Accepted Answer

Four

Answer

Two

Answer

Three

Answer

Six

Question 15

How many countries were the FIRST to officially block Grok AI in January 2026, citing the platform's generation of deepfake sexually explicit imagery of women and children?

Accepted Answer

Two

Answer

One

Answer

Four

Answer

Seven

UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Balancing innovation with women’s digital safety

Q1. Which one of the following is the nodal ministry that released the India AI Governance Guidelines (2025) and notified the IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Amendment Rules, 2026 governing synthetically generated content?

Q3. The DPDP Rules, 2025 — relevant to non-consensual use of women's personal data by deepfake tools — were framed exclusively to operationalise which one of the following enactments?

Q5. The India AI Governance Guidelines (2025) are anchored in exactly how many guiding 'sutras' (foundational principles)?

Q6. The India AI Governance Guidelines 2026, released by MeitY under the IndiaAI Mission at the India AI Impact Summit, are organised around 'Seven Sutras.' Which of the following is identified as the FIRST and foundational sutra on which the entire framework rests?

Q7. The India AI Governance Guidelines 2026 were drafted by a committee constituted in July 2025 and released under which mission by which nodal ministry?

Q8. Under the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2026, what is the maximum time permitted for a social media intermediary to take down non-consensual intimate deepfake imagery after a complaint is received?

Q9. The IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Amendment Rules, 2026 introduced the category 'Synthetically Generated Information (SGI).' Which of the following most precisely captures the definition of SGI as used in those Rules?

Q10. Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, which of the following violations by a Data Fiduciary attracts the HIGHEST monetary penalty?

Q11. As enumerated in a Rajya Sabha statement in August 2025, how many distinct sections of the Information Technology Act, 2000 are invoked to address deepfake-related offences in India?

Q12. In policy discourse on online violence against women, the term 'Non-Consensual Intimate Imagery (NCII)' specifically refers to:

Q13. Which Supreme Court judgment is considered the PRIMARY constitutional basis for the right to privacy in India, subsequently relied upon to ground legal protections against non-consensual digital surveillance, deepfakes, and data misuse?

Q14. The Data Protection Board of India, established as a fully digital adjudicatory body under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, comprises how many members in total, with the stipulation that at least one member must be a legal expert?

Q15. How many countries were the FIRST to officially block Grok AI in January 2026, citing the platform's generation of deepfake sexually explicit imagery of women and children?