Mumbai: The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has released its Annual Complaints Report 2025-26, highlighting a sharp rise in misleading and harmful advertising across digital platforms, with offshore betting emerging as the most violative sector despite ongoing regulatory interventions.
ASCI reviewed 11,581 cases during FY 2025-26, marking a 21% increase over the previous year. These cases pertained to 9,841 advertisements, reflecting a 37% rise year-on-year, with 98% of the ads scrutinised requiring modification.
Offshore betting topped the list of violative sectors with 6,933 cases, followed by realty (643 cases), personal care (576 cases), food and beverages (331 cases), and products violating the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act (274 cases).
The report noted that 93% of the reviewed cases originated from ASCI’s proactive monitoring mechanisms, underlining the growing importance of surveillance-driven consumer protection in the digital era.
Digital media continued to dominate the violations landscape, accounting for 97.3% of all advertisements scrutinised. Sponsored content on social media platforms constituted 82% of these violations, with Meta-owned platforms contributing nearly 79.84% of all digital violations identified by ASCI.
According to the report, advertisements promoting harmful products or situations accounted for 75.4% of all violations, while misleading claims contributed 27.5% of cases.
ASCI highlighted that the offshore betting ecosystem remains particularly challenging due to rapid content creation, cross-platform distribution, influencer amplification, and affiliate-led advertising models. Between April and December 2025, the regulator identified 854 influencer violations linked to offshore betting, including multiple accounts exclusively dedicated to such promotions.
Influencer marketing violations extended beyond betting-related content as well. Out of 1,609 influencer advertisements processed during the year, 97.3% required modifications, with more than 54% promoting categories either prohibited by law or subject to advertising restrictions.
Illegal betting emerged as the leading influencer violation category at 54%, followed by personal care (16.9%), electronics and consumer durables (7.9%), food and beverages (6.3%), and fashion and lifestyle (4.3%).
The report also pointed to widespread exaggerated claims and pseudo-scientific messaging within the beauty, personal care, and food and beverage categories.
In personal care, ASCI observed recurring claims related to instant results, guaranteed skin or hair transformations, unrealistic timelines, manufactured scientific precision, and unverifiable “natural” or “safe” positioning.
In food and beverage advertising, misleading claims around metabolic health, chronic diseases, fertility, child development, and organ function were identified across categories such as weight-loss supplements, growth formulas, and “drinkable sunscreens”.
ASCI further noted that nutraceuticals have become a major area of concern, with the segment accounting for 52% of food and beverage-related cases, of which 96% required modification. The regulator observed that the rapid growth of nutraceutical products is increasingly blurring the distinction between food and medicine.
Despite the surge in violations, ASCI reported an improvement in voluntary compliance, which increased from 83% to 86% during the year. Television and print media demonstrated near-perfect compliance levels at 97%. The report also noted that 61% of reviewed advertisements were modified or withdrawn without contest following ASCI’s intervention.
Commenting on the findings, Sudhanshu Vats, Chairman, ASCI, said, “This year’s complaints data is the reflection of an advertising ecosystem that is being reshaped by intense competition, speed and digital amplification. Across categories, we are seeing a growing tendency toward exaggerated claims, manufactured scientific credibility, influencer-led amplification and the normalisation of non-compliance as a post-publication correction exercise. The report’s findings underline the urgent need for stronger accountability, better substantiation standards, responsible influencer practices and preventive approaches to governance in digital advertising.”
Manisha Kapoor, CEO and Secretary General, ASCI, said, “In the digital era, ASCI has constantly pushed the boundaries on consumer protection. Our proactive monitoring system has allowed us to act at a scale and speed that complaint-driven models cannot match. Working closely with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has shown how effective stakeholders acting in concert can be when it comes to meaningful consumer protection. Similarly, the partnership with the Telangana Real Estate Regulatory Authority to monitor and curb misleading real estate promotions is helping to reinforce consumer trust in such advertising.”
