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Tag: MCA

  • MCA Denies Clean Chit To Byju’s In Financial Fraud Case, Confirms Ongoing Probe | Companies News

    New Delhi: The Centre clarified on Wednesday that an investigation by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has not cleared edtech firm Byju’s of financial fraud, confirming that the investigation is still ongoing.

    “There have been reports claiming that edtech startup Byju’s has been cleared of financial fraud in an ongoing investigation by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA). It is categorically clarified that such reports are factually incorrect and misleading,” the Ministry stated. (Also Read: No Jobs for Married Women In iPhone Factory In India? Foxconn Faces Discrimination Claims)

    The Ministry added that proceedings under the Companies Act, 2013, initiated by the MCA are still ongoing and no conclusions should be drawn at this stage. Byju’s, facing multiple legal battles in courts and the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) is attempting to raise 200 million dollars through a rights issue. However, the NCLT has prohibited the company from using any funds for now. (Also Read: Top Stocks On D-Street: Bharti Airtel, SBI, And Vedanta Among 7 In Spotlight Today)

    Byju’s is also exploring out-of-court settlements with some of its creditors. Once valued at $22 billion, the edtech company is now worth zero. Global investment giant Prosus wrote off the value of its shareholding in Byju’s, recording a loss of $493 million in its annual report for FY24. (With IANS Inputs)

  • Misinformation Combat Alliance To Launch WhatsApp Tipline On Mar 25 To Combat Deepfakes |

    New Delhi: Ahead of general elections, the Misinformation Combat Alliance (MCA) is launching a Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) tipline on March 25 to help detect and respond to AI-generated synthetic media, a release said on Thursday.

    The move assumes significance as the countdown to elections in India has seen the industry scale up election integrity efforts, particularly to crack down on deepfakes and AI (Artificial Intelligence) deceptions. The general elections are scheduled to be held in seven phases starting from April 19, and results will be declared on June 4. (Also Read: Vivo T3 5G With Triple Camera Setup Launched In India; Check Specs, Price And Launch Offers)

    “MCA's Deepfakes Analysis Unit launches WhatsApp tipline in collaboration with Meta to detect deepfakes,” the release said. With the latest initiative, any member of the public can forward audio notes and videos to +91 9999025044 on WhatsApp to get assessments on whether a piece of media is AI-generated or contains elements of it, the release said. (Also Read: OnePlus 12R New Storage Variant Launched In India; Check Price, Bank Offers And Availability)

    The tipline will offer support in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, the release said. The launch of the WhatsApp tipline is in line with Meta's efforts to collaborate with industry stakeholders in the fact-checking ecosystem to build instruments that help curb the spread of AI-generated misinformation.

    The MCA is a cross-industry alliance that brings together companies, organizations, institutions, industry associations and entities to collectively fight misinformation and its impact. Currently, MCA has 16 members, including fact-checking organizations, media outlets, and civic tech organizations, and is inviting strategic partners to collaborate on this industry-wide initiative to combat misinformation.

    The DAU has been set up with the aim of providing the public with a trusted resource that will help them differentiate between real and synthetic media. The initiative will tap into expertise from a network of partners – academicians, researchers, startups, tech platforms, and fact-checkers – to verify and assess the media content submitted to the tipline.

    The assessment reports will be sent back to users in response to their messages. The reports will also be available on the DAU website and DAU's recently launched WhatsApp Channel which will serve as an authoritative source for people to receive verified and accurate information, according to the release. DAU's partners include member fact-checking organizations as well as industry partners and digital labs that will help assess and verify the content.