The Indian advertising industry’s self-governing body issued a report on Thursday that highlighted the names of 28 influencers including Bollywood celebrities and fashion and lifestyle influencers.
These also included MasterChef India 4 finalist Karishma Sakhrani and tech blogger Shlok Srivastava.
These celebrities failed to comply with disclosure labels on the first instance and on subsequent routine checks. They represent brands and businesses including Myntra, Nykaa, Manyavar, Kama Ayurveda. ASCI said that influencers and brands were contacted by the complaints handling team and were asked to comply with the guidelines.
These influencers together have millions of followers on Instagram. Singh and Fernandez together boast of close to 96 million followers on the photo and video sharing app.
Manisha Kapoor, general secretary, ASCI said that the non-compliant cases are routinely escalated to the government. “We hope this signals to the industry that we are serious about consumer protection and pushing the agenda around misleading ads. And that we will continue to educate, collaborate to reach out to more and more influencers and brands to spread the message of responsibility and transparency in advertising.”
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Last year in June,
ASCI made it mandatory for influencers to label their promotional posts to ensure transparency and safeguard the interests of consumers.
Between July-December 2021, about 5,000 posts, stories and feeds from influencers’ handles were screened for complaints including those from end consumers.
Out of all the complaints 719 were in violation of the guidelines. While 80% of influencers voluntarily amended or withdrew their posts, out of the remaining posts 86% compiled after ASCI asked them to withdraw or modify their posts.
The violations predominantly fell in the following categories: fashion and lifestyle (29%), cosmetics (19%), food and beverage (13%), and personal care (12%).
Key violations observed included the absence of disclosures, inconsistency of disclosures, and incorrect disclosure placement.
