13/07/2023
Cyber Crime Part - 2
Did you know that cyber crime cases reported in 2013 were only 5693 cases and in 2022 the number of cyber crime cases reported are - 13.9 lakh. Can you see the meteoric rise in the intensity of cases in ? This also makes u prone to be a victim of cyber crime.
Come let's find out from part 2 of our cyber crime series to learn and educate more on various sections and famous case laws.
PART-II
CYBER LAWS REGARDING CYBER CRIME AND CYBER SECURITY
CYBER CRIME REPORTED IN INDIA (2013–2022)
2013—---5,693
2014—-----9,622
2015—-------11,592
2016—---------12,317
2017—-------------21,593
2018—-----------------27,248
2019—--------------------44735
2020—------------------------50,035
2021—----------------------------52974
2022—----------------------------------13.9 Lakh
……As per NCRB Data
Cyber crime in India:-
Following are the sections under IT Act, 2000. :-
1. Section 65- Temping with the computers source documents.
Whoever intentionally or knowingly destroy, conceal or change any computer’s source code that is used for a computer, computer program, and computer system or computer network.
Punishment:
Any person who involves in such crimes could be sentenced upto 3 years imprisonment or with a fine of Rs.2 lakhs or with both.
2. Section 66- Hacking with computer system, data alteration etc.
Whoever with the purpose or intention to cause any loss, damage or to destroy, delete or to alter any information that resides in a public or any person’s computer. Diminish its utility, values or affects it injuriously by any means,commits hacking.
Punishment:-
Any person who involves in such crimes could be sentenced upto 3 years imprisonment, or with a fine that may extend upto 2 lakhs rupees, or both.
3. Section 66A- Sending offensive messages through any communication services.
Any information or message sent through any communication services this is offensive or has threatening characters.
Any information that is not true or is not valid and is sent with the end goal of annoying, inconvenience, danger, insult, obstruction, injury, criminal intention,
enmity, hatred or ill will.
Any electronic mail or email sent with the end goal of causing anger, difficulty or mislead or to deceive the address about the origin of the messages.
Punishment:-
Any individual found to commit such crimes under this section could be sentenced upto 3years of imprisonment
along with a fine.
4. Section 66B- Receiving stolen computer’s resources or communication devices dishonestly.
Receiving or retaining any stolen computer, computer’s resources or any communication devices knowingly or
having the reason to believe the same.
Punishment:-
Any person who involves in such crimes could be sentenced either description for a term that may extend upto 3 years of imprisonment or with a fine of rupee 1 lakh or both.
5. Section 66C- Identify theft.
Using of one’s digital or electronic signature or one’s password or any other unique identification of any person is a crime.
Punishment:-
Any person who involve in such crimes could be sentenced either with a description for a term which may extend
upto 3 years of imprisonment along with a fine that may extend upto rupee 1 lakh.
6. Section 66D- Cheating by personation by the use of computer’s resources.
Whoever tries to cheats someone by personating through any communication devices or computer’s resources shall be sentenced either with a description for a term that may extend upto 3 years of imprisonment along with a fine that may extend upto rupee 1 lakh.
7. Section 66E- Privacy or violation
Whoever knowingly or with an intention of publishing, transmitting or capturing images of private areas or private parts of any individual without his/her consent,
that violets the privacy of the individual shall be shall be sentenced to 3 years of imprisonment or with a fine not exceeding more than 2 lakhs rupees or both.
8. Section 66F- Cyber terrorism.
A. Whoever intentionally threatened the integrity, unity, sovereignty or security or strike terror among the people or among any group of people by-
I. Deny to any people to access computer’s resources.
II. Attempting to break in or access a computer resource without any authorization or to exceed authorized
access.
III. Introducing any computer’s contaminant, and through such conducts causes or is probable to cause any death
or injury to any individual or damage or any destruction of properties or disrupt or it is known that by such conduct it is probable to cause damage or disruptions of supply or services that are essential to the life of people or unfavorably affect the critical information’s infrastructure specified under the section 70 of the IT Act.
B. By intention or by knowingly tries to go through or tries to gain access to computer’s resources without the
authorization or exceeding authorized access, and by such conducts obtains access to the data, information or computer’s database which is limited or restricted for certain reason because of the security of the state or foreign relations, or any restricted database, data or any information with the reason to believe that those data or information or the computer’s database obtained may use to cause or probably use to cause injury to the interest of the independence and integrity of our country India.
Punishment:-
Whoever conspires or commits such cyber crime or cyber terrorism shall be sentenced to life time imprisonment.
9. Section 67- Transmitting or publishing obscene materials in electronic form.
Whoever transmits or publishes or cause to publish any obscene materials in electronics form. Any material that is vulgar or appeal to be lubricious or if its effect is for instance to tends to corrupt any individual who are likely to have regard to all relevant circumstances to read or to see or to hear the matter that contained in it, shall be sentenced on the first convict with either description for a
term that may extend upto five years of imprisonment along with a fine which may extend upto 1 lakh rupee and in the second or subsequent convict it can be sentenced either description for a term that may extend upto ten years along with a fine that may perhaps extend to two lakhs rupees.
10. Section 67A- Transmitting or publishing of materials that contains sexually explicit contents, acts etc in electronics form.
Whoever transmits or publishes materials that contains sexually explicit contents or acts shall be sentences for either description for a term which may extend upto 5 years or imprisonment along with a fine that could extend to 10 lakhs rupees in the first convict. And in the event of the second convict criminal could be sentenced for either description for a term that could extend upto 7 years of imprisonment along with a fine that may extend upto 20 lakhs rupees.
11. Section 67B- Transmitting or publishing of materials that depicts children in sexually explicit act etc in electronics form.
Whoever transmits or publishes any materials that depict children in sexually explicit act or conduct in any electronics form shall be sentenced for either description for a term which may extend to 5 years of imprisonment with a fine that could extend to rupees 10 lakhs on the first conviction. And in the event of second conviction criminals could be sentenced for either description for a term that could extend to 7 years along with a fine that could extend to rupees 10 lakhs.
12. Section 67C- Retention and preservation of information by intermediaries.
I. Intermediaries shall retain and preserve such information that might specify for such period and in such a format and manner that the Central Government may prescribe.
II. Any intermediaries knowingly or intentionally contravene the provision of the sub-section.
Punishment:-
Whoever commits such crimes shall be sentenced for a period that may extend upto 3 years of imprisonment and also liable to fine.
13. Section 69- Power to issue direction for monitor, decryption or interception of any information through computer’s resources.
I. Where the Central government’s or State government’s authorized officers, as the case may be in this behalf, if fulfilled that it is required or expedient to do in the interest of the integrity or the sovereignty, the security defence of our country India, state’s security, friendly relations with the foreign states for preventing any incident to the commission of any cognizable offences that is related to above or investigation of any offences that is subjected to the provision of sub-section (II). For reasons to be recorded writing, direct any agency of the appropriate government, by order, decrypt or monitor
or cause to be intercept any information that is generated or received or transmitted or is stored in any computer’s resources.
II. The safeguard and the procedure that is subjected to such decryption, monitoring or interception may carried out, shall be such as may be prescribed.
III. The intermediaries, the subscribers or any individual who is in the charge of the computer’s resources shall call upon by any agencies referred to the sub-section (I), extends all services and technical assistances to:
a) Providing safe access or access to computer’s resources receiving, transmitting, generating or to store such information or
b) Decrypting, intercepting or monitoring the information, as the case might be or
c) Providing information that is stored in computer.
IV. The intermediaries, the subscribes or any individual who fails to help the agency referred in the sub-section (III), shall be sentenced for a term that could extend to 7
years of imprisonment and also could be legally responsible to fine [17].
There are many other sections in the IT Act, 2000 .
Among them a few important sections one should know are as follows:
Table-2: A few important sections one should know :-
Offences Sec. under IT Act, 2000
Damage to Computer, Computer
System etc.---------------------------Section 43
Power to issue direction for
blocking from public access of
any information through any
computer’s resources.-----------Section 69A
Power to authorize to collect
traffic information or data and to monitor through any computer's resources for cyber security.---------------------Section 69B
Un-authorized access to protected system.--------------------------------Section 70
Penalty for misrepresentation.-- Section 71
Breach of confidentiality and privacy. —---------------------------------------Section 72
Publishing False digital signature certificates.---------------------------Section 73
Publication for fraudulent purpose.-------------------------------Section 74
Act to apply for contravention or offence that is committed outside India.-Section 75
Compensation, confiscation or penalties for not to interfere with other punishment.
—---------------------------------------Section 77
Compounding of Offences.---- Section 77A
Offences by Companies.--------- Section 85
Sending threatening messages by e-mail.
—--------------------------------Section 503 IPC
Sending defamatory messages by e-mail.
—--------------------------------Section 499 IPC
Bogus websites, Cyber Frauds. Section —-------------------------------------------420 IPC
E-mail Spoofing.------------ Section 463 IPC
Web Jacking.---------------- Section 383 IPC
E-mail Abuse.--------------- Section 500 IPC
Criminal intimidation by anonymous communications.------------Section 507 IPC
Online sale of Drugs.-------------- NDPS Act
Online sale of Arms.----------------- Arm Act.
IMPORTANT CASE LAWS REGARDING CYBER CRIME IN INDIA:-
Cyber Crime’s scenario in India(A Few Case study). :-
1….The Bank NSP Case:-
In this case a management trainee of a bank got engaged to a marriage. The couple used to exchange many emails
using the company’s computers. After some time they had broken up their marriage and the young lady created some
fake email ids such as “Indian bar associations” and sent mails to the boy‘s foreign clients. She used the banks computer to do this. The boy‘s company lost a huge number of clients and took the bank to court. The bank was held liable for the emails sent using the bank‘s system.
2…..Bazee.com case:-
In December 2004 the Chief Executive Officer of Bazee.com was arrested because he was selling a compact disk (CD) with offensive material on the website, and even CD was also conjointly sold-out in the market of Delhi. The Delhi police and therefore the Mumbai Police got into action and later the CEO was free on bail.
3……Parliament Attack Case:-
The Bureau of Police Research and Development, Hyderabad had handled this case. A laptop was recovered from the terrorist who attacked the Parliament. The laptop which was detained from the two terrorists, who were gunned down on 13th December 2001 when the Parliament was under siege, was sent to Computer
Forensics Division of BPRD. The laptop contained several proofs that affirmed the two terrorist’s motives, mainly the sticker of the Ministry of Home that they had created
on the laptop and affixed on their ambassador car to achieve entry into Parliament House and the fake ID card
that one of the two terrorists was carrying with a Government of India emblem and seal. The emblems (of the 3 lions) were carefully scanned and additionally the seal was also craftly created together with a residential address of Jammu and Kashmir. However careful detection proved that it was all forged and made on the laptop.
4……Andhra Pradesh Tax Case:-
The owner of the plastics firm in Andhra Pradesh was arrested and cash of Rs. 22 was recovered from his house by the Vigilance Department. They wanted evidence from him concerning the unaccounted cash. The suspected person submitted 6,000 vouchers to prove the legitimacy of trade, however when careful scrutiny the vouchers and contents of his computers it unconcealed that every one of them were made after the raids were conducted. It had been concealed that the suspect was running 5 businesses beneath the presence of 1 company and used fake and computerized vouchers to show sales records and save tax. So the dubious techniques of the businessman from the state were exposed when officials of the department got hold of computers utilized by the suspected person.
5……SONY.SAMBANDH.COM CASE:-
India saw its 1st cybercrime conviction. This is the case where Sony India Private Limited filed a complaint that runs a website referred to as www.sony-sambandh.com targeting the NRIs. The website allows NRIs to send Sony products to their friends and relatives in India after they pay for it online. The company undertakes to deliver the products to the involved recipients. In May 2002, somebody logged onto the web site underneath the identity of Barbara Campa and ordered a Sony colour television set and a cordless head phone. She requested to deliver the product to Arif Azim in Noida and gave the number of her credit card for payment. The payment was
accordingly cleared by the credit card agency and the transaction processed. After the related procedures of dues diligence and checking, the items were delivered to Arif Azim by the company. When the product was delivered, the company took digital pictures so as to
indicate the delivery being accepted by Arif Azim. The transaction closed at that, but after one and a half months the credit card agency informed the company that this was an unauthorized transaction as the real owner had denied having made the purchase. The company had filed a complaint for online cheating at the CBI that registered a case under the Section 418, Section 419 and Section 420 of the IPC (Indian Penal Code). Arif Azim was arrested after the matter was investigated. Investigations discovered that Arif Azim, whereas acting at a call centre in Noida didgain access to the number of the credit card of an American national which he misused on the company’s site. The CBI recovered the color television along with the cordless head phone. In this matter, the CBI had proof to prove their case so the accused admitted his guilt. The
court had convicted Arif Azim under the Section 418, Section 419 and Section 420 of the IPC, this being the first time that a cybercrime has been convicted. The court, felt that since the defendant was a boy of 24 years and a first-time convict, a compassionate view needed to be taken.
Thus, the court discharged the defendant on the probation for one year.
6……SHREYA SINGHAL VS UNION OF INDIA CASE :-
Two women were arrested under Section 66A of the Information Technology Act after posting offensive comments on Facebook regarding Mumbai’s total closure following the death of a political leader. Section 66A of the Information Technology Act presents consequences for the usage of laptop sources or communications, consisting of data this is offensive, fake, worrying, inconvenient, dangerous, offensive, repulsive, dangerous or malicious. The women responded to the arrest in a petition challenging the constitutionality of Section 66A of the Information Technology Act because they violated freedom of speech and expression.
SUPREME COURT DECISION:-
The Supreme Court made its decision based on three concepts: deliberation, advocacy, and incitement. He pointed out that simply discussing or defending a case, no matter how popular, is at the heart of freedom of speech and expression. Section 66A may restrict any form of communication and does not appear to distinguish between the mere advocacy or discussion of a particular issue that is offensive to some people and the instigation of such words leading to a causal relationship to public disorder, safety, etc. When asked if Section 66A was intended to protect people from defamation, the court answered that Section 66A condemned abusive language that may annoy people but does not affect their reputation.
CONCLUSION:-
The rise and proliferation of newly developed technologies begin star to operate many cybercrimes in recent years. Cybercrime has become great threats to mankind. Protection against cybercrime is a vital part for social, cultural and security aspect of a country. The Government of India has enacted IT Act, 2000 to deal withcybercrimes. The Act further revise the IPC, 1860, the IEA (Indian Evidence Act), 1872, the Banker's Books Evidence Act 1891 and the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. Any part of the world cyber crime could be originated passing national boundaries over the internet creating both technical and legal complexities of investigating and prosecuting these crimes. The international harmonizing efforts, coordination and co-operation among various nations are required to take action towards the cyber crimes.Our main purpose of writing this paper is to spread the content of cyber crime among the common people. At the end of this paper “A brief study on Cyber Crime and Cyber Law’s of India” we want to say cyber crimes can never be acknowledged. If anyone falls in the prey of cyber attack, please come forward and register a case in your nearest police station. If the criminals won’t get punishment for their deed, they will never stop.
THE END
