Blocking of AI Web Crawler

• 04 Jul 2025

Source: IE 

Why in News?  

In a landmark move, major US and UK publishers have started blocking Artificial Intelligence (AI) web crawlers to prevent unauthorised use of their content.  

• This has renewed calls in India for consent-based copyright safeguards and fair revenue sharing, raising key concerns in digital governance, copyright enforcement, and ethical AI use. 

What is an AI Web Crawler? 

• About: An AI web crawler is a type of automated software or bot that scans and collects content from the internet specifically to help train AI models like Large Language Models (LLMs), or to provide live information retrieval for AI assistants. 
• Types: 
  • Model Training Crawler: Extract website data to train generative AI models. 
    • Examples: GPTBot (OpenAI), Amazonbot (Amazon), GoogleOther (Google). 
  • Live Retrieval Crawlers: These bots pull real-time data from websites to supplement pre-trained models during user queries, ensuring up-to-date and cited responses in AI search tools.  
    • It is used by AI platforms like Bing, ChatGPT, etc., to stay updated. 
• Concerns:  
  • Lack of Regulatory Framework: Currently, India lacks a regulatory framework to oversee how AI companies access and use web content.  
    • This has led to a situation where large tech firms benefit from freely available Indian content without consent or oversight, while smaller publishers are left with no tools to monitor or restrict such access. 
  • Copyright Enforcement: News articles, blogs, and educational content are used to train LLMs without permission or compensation. 
    • India’s Copyright Act, 1957 is not equipped to address AI-specific use cases, such as derivative AI outputs or training data rights.  
    • There is no clear interpretation of “fair use” vs. “unlicensed training” in the Indian context. 
      • India has no data protection law focused on non-personal data, which LLMs mostly rely on for AI training. 
  • Ethical Use of AI: AI developers rarely disclose what data they use, leaving original creators without acknowledgement or reward.  
    • Moreover, training AI on unvetted or outdated material can introduce biases and lead to inaccurate or harmful outputs, undermining public trust in AI systems.  
    • These challenges underscore the urgent need for India to establish a consent-based, rights-respecting digital ecosystem. 
• Global Frameworks and India’s Path Forward: EU’s AI Act, 2024 has started addressing AI training on copyrighted data. 
  • US publishers are entering licensing deals or legally challenging AI firms. 
  • India can study these and develop an Indian model for AI governance, balancing innovation with creators' rights. 
  • The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) and the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) must jointly legally define “unauthorised data scraping” and establish a consent-based AI licensing framework to protect creators’ rights. 
    • They should also enable technical safeguards by providing AI bot-blocking tools to Indian publishers, in collaboration with platforms like Cloudflare, to help secure digital content. 

Drishti Mains Question:

Examine the challenges posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) web crawlers  to India's copyright regime. 

UPSC Civil Services Examination, Previous Year Questions (PYQs) 

Mains

Q. In a globalized world, Intellectual Property Rights assume significance and are a source of litigation. Broadly distinguish between the terms—Copyrights, Patents and Trade Secrets. (2014)