India blocks 129 betting websites following fake court orders

India’s government ordered internet providers to block 129 betting websites. According to Reuters investigation, it was based on two forged High Court orders and raised concerns about weaknesses in the country’s website takedown process. India’s Department of Telecommunications issued blocking directions on 21 July and 2 September, relying on documents purportedly issued by the Rajasthan and Allahabad High Courts. Investigation showed that none of the two orders appeared in courts’ official records. The Rajasthan High Court registrar confirmed that the documents are fraudulent. After the Reuters raised concerns, Allahabad High Court filed a police complaint on 6 November. Later, police opened an investigation into alleged forgery and cheating, although no arrests have been made. Ghanshyam Yadav, a senior state cybercrime official, told: It is fake. It is not a genuine order from High Court of Allahabad. Two fake orders resulted to block 129 websites in India that offer online casinos and betting. It is still unclear who created the documents and if there was AI involved. Fake orders passed through government channels The first forged document pretended to be legality from Rajasthan High Court and offered to the department of telecommunications through e-mail on July 19, which was signed by a so-called advocate-on-record, Aryan Chaudhary, but when the e-mail ended up in the system, it showed an error. On July 21, the authorities instructed Internet service providers to block 34 gambling sites indicated in the forged paper. The second letter supposedly coming from Allahabad High Court contained its logo, seal and a QR code that should have confirmed its authenticity, yet the code led the user to the irrelevant site with the number of some unrelated case. The person identifying himself as advocate Kartikey Pandey used the same case number in his letter with the document to authorities on August 22. After more correspondence on the official level, the department of telecommunications issued the order about blocking another 95 betting places on September 2. The findings highlight potential weaknesses in India’s online content removal mechanism, which gives authorities significant powers to restrict access to websites and online material.