Cyber Crime Penalties in India
• According to ‘Information Technology Act 2000’ which came to effect on 17/10/2000, all the offensive acts performed by any person with the intention to harm any particular person or a community is punishable by the government.
Some examples of activities coming under this act are:
1) Stalking
2) Cyber Bullying
3) Voyeurism
4) Fake news
• Cyber Stalking:
1) The cyber stalking cases are dealt in India by the:
1. Information technology act 2000.
2. The criminal law (Amendment) act 2013.
2) What is Cyber Stalking?
Cyber stalking is a type of a crime. In the cyber stalking there is a involvement of two persons- Firstly, the stalker is also known as attacker who do the crime & Secondly, the Victim who is harassed by that stalker. Cyber stalking is also known as cyber crime. Cyber which is related to the internet and the stalking means to browsing anyone’s online history with the help of any social media or in other websites to know about that particular person is term as stalker.
3) How is ‘Cyber Stalking’ faced by the people of India:
Cyber stalking is a serious crime, a type of offence committed by the person’s known as the stalkers. There are many cases filed against those persons by the victim every year in India. In India the cases which are filed against those stalkers are majorly reported by the females, nearly about 60% females get victimized. The stalking is majorly spotted in the two states of India; Firstly, Maharashtra with 1,399 cases which had a higher number of stalking. Secondly, Delhi with around 1130 cases is filed against the stalking.
4) Penalties of ‘Cyber Stalking’ in India:
Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 states that a person would be punished with imprisonment for up to 3 years with fine if he uses a computer resource or communication device to send Any information that is grossly offensive or has menacing character.
• Cyber Bullying:
1) The cyber Bullying cases are dealt in India by the:
1. Information technology act 2000.
2. Section 507 IPC.
2) What is Cyber Bullying:
Cyber Bullying is nothing but bullying someone on online platforms such as Facebook, Whats-app, Instagram, tweeter etc. But it is said to be bullied only when something negative is shared about someone and that can cause a huge harm to their reputation. Cyber bullying is so dangerous because it gives the ability to harass anyone in public at any time through devices and mostly students are the victims of these kinds of harassment. A Canadian educator, Bill Belsey first coined the term cyber bullying. The main intention of cyber bullying is to harm a person mentally.
3) How is ‘Cyber Bullying’ face by people in India:
Presently in India there is a huge increase in cyber bullying cases. But the no.of cases reported are not proportionate to actual no.of cases because 9.2% of the kids didn’t tell their teachers and parents about getting bullied. According to Child Rights and You (CRY) 1 in 3 adults get bullied everyday and most of them are aged between 13-18 years. According to the National Crime Records Bureau there is a 36% increase in cyber stalking and cyber bullying cases in India.
• Fake News:
1) The cyber Bullying cases are dealt in India by the:
1. Information Technology Act 2000.
2. Section 153A, 292, 292, 499 etc of IPC.
2) What is ‘Fake News’:
Experts now recommend avoiding the term ‘fake news’, or at least limit its use, as the term ‘fake news’ is closely associated with politics, and this association can unhelpfully narrow the focus of the issue. The term ‘false information’ is preferable as it can refer to a diverse range of disinformation covering topics such as health, environmental and economics across all platforms and genres, while ‘fake news’ is more narrowly understood as political news stories.
3) How is ‘Fake News’ face by people in India:
• Voyeurism:
1) The ‘Voyeurism’ cases are dealt in India by the:
1. Information technology act 2000.
2. Section 509 IPC.
2) What is ‘Voyeurism’:
Voyeurism is defined as an interest in observing unsuspecting people while they undress, are naked, or engage in sexual activities. The interest is usually more in the act of watching, rather than in the person being watched. The person doing the watching is called a voyeur, but you might hear them casually referred to as a peeping Tom. A key element of voyeurism is that the person being watched doesn’t know they’re being observed. The person is typically in a place where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as their home or other private area.
3) Penalties of ‘Voyeurism’ in India:
The punishment can range from one to three years for one conviction. The punishment can be anywhere from three to seven years in case of two convictions. However, here the accused is liable for conviction if the picture is taken in a private space or while the complainant is engaged in a private activity which is not usually done in a public space.
This is all for now Thank you Guys for spending some of ur precious time here on the blog. I wuld like to conclude by saying that there should be more strict rules and regulations for ‘Cyber Bullying’ and ‘Fake News’ which might bring a great difference in the youth’s mental health.
By- Nalen Guptaa
School- DPS G. Faridabad
Hackershala Intern