A staggering 69% of influencers featured in Forbes India’s Top 100 Digital Stars 2024 list have failed to comply with mandatory disclosure rules for paid promotions, according to a report by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). The study, which analysed Instagram and YouTube posts from September to November 2024, examined influencers with a combined reach of over 110 million, revealing a widespread lack of transparency in influencer marketing.
That’s alarming given that an in a recent iCubesWire survey (Influencer Marketing 2024 Reflections, Audience Outlook Forecast 2025), 82% of the respondents acknowledged that influencers influence their buying decisions, underscoring the steady growth of influencer-led marketing.
The report found that many influencers are not clearly disclosing when they are promoting brands, a violation of guidelines set by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) and ASCI. Violations included the absence of disclosure labels (56.8%) and disclosures buried within hashtags (43.2%), both of which fail to meet the required prominent display standards.
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The fashion & lifestyle, telecom products, and personal care sectors led the non-compliance list, accounting for 62% of all violations. Other significant violators included travel services (8.7%), food and beverage (4.3%), automotive (2.9%), and durables (2.9%). ASCI reported a 93% compliance rate after its intervention, with most influencers agreeing to rectify their posts. A small number of cases, however, have been escalated to the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting for continued non-compliance, it said.
ASCI CEO Manisha Kapoor expressed serious concerns about the report’s findings, stressing the urgent need for corrective action within the influencer marketing landscape. “It all comes down to audience trust,” Kapoor stated. “Influencers share both personal and paid content, and consumers have a right to know which is which. Studies show that influencer recommendations directly impact purchasing decisions and behaviours. Transparency ensures that audiences can make informed choices, knowing when a message is personal versus brand-sponsored.”
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