Influencer ads need risk-based rules, not just disclosure
India's influencer economy has outgrown disclosure labels. Here's why brands need risk-based compliance across fashion, finance and health.
India’s influencer economy has outgrown the simple disclosure label. Sponsored posts and celebrity endorsements have become integrated brand strategy, but the regulatory environment still has no dedicated influencer advertising law. The rules sit across the Consumer Protection Authority, the Advertising Standards Council of India and sector-specific frameworks.
01 · The current patchwork
ASCI’s influencer guidelines require creators to disclose material connections with brands and hold both advertisers and influencers responsible. Although ASCI’s code has statutory recognition in India’s Pay TV laws, in digital media it remains a self-regulatory body with limited enforcement powers. The CCPA’s guidelines on misleading advertisements and endorsements add the statutory consumer-protection layer.
The problem, as Kaushik Moitra of Bharucha & Partners argues, is that fashion influencers, finfluencers and healthcare influencers all fall under the same “influencer” umbrella even though the consequences of inaccurate advice can be very different.
02 · Disclosure is not the end of the audit
A post can carry #ad or “paid partnership” and still be misleading, unsubstantiated, or made by someone without the expertise to back the technical advice. ASCI already recognises this: creators giving advice in banking, financial services, insurance, health or nutrition must hold and prominently disclose the necessary qualifications.
In practice, investment advice may require SEBI registration, other financial advice an IRDAI licence, and health advice relevant medical or professional qualifications. The gap is between having these safeguards on paper and ensuring they work consistently across a fast-moving creator ecosystem.
03 · Why audience and harm matter
Influencer content is designed for quick decisions and often reads like personal experience rather than advertising. Younger and less digitally literate consumers can be especially susceptible to persuasive content that appears organic. Accountability therefore has to cover what is said, who says it and whether the audience can reasonably understand it.
The stakes go beyond conventional influencer campaigns. In September 2026, the National Human Rights Commission sought responses from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Delhi Police Commissioner over allegations involving paid advertisements and child sexual abuse material. The case raised questions about content being generated, recommended, amplified and monetised.
04 · A risk-based way forward
A typical campaign includes a brand, agency, talent manager, creator and platform, so responsibility can fragment. The argument is not for another standalone rulebook but for clearer, risk-based accountability inside existing frameworks.
- For fashion and lifestyle, clear disclosure and basic advertising standards may be enough.
- For finance, health and nutrition, the threshold should be higher: qualification, registration and licence checks.
- For brands and agencies, compliance cannot be a disclosure checkbox; audit the claim, the creator’s qualifications and the audience.
The regulatory question is whether India’s framework can recognise that different forms of influence create different risks—and regulate them accordingly.
Source: Afaqs!
