View of EMERGING CYBER CRIMES

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ACCENT JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS ECOLOGY & ENGINEERING Available Online: www.ajeee.co.in Vol.03, Issue 01, January 2018, ISSN -2456-1037 (INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL) UGC APPROVED NO. 48767

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EMERGING CYBER CRIMES

AUTHOR – PROF. (DR.) R.K.PATNI AND MS. PUJA PAUL

INTRODUCTION

The term Cyber Crime is not at all a new perspective for all of us but, many are not aware that the old thief whom we believed is under our control and surveillance has come back in a new clothes, a new version and a new style anonymous. This unknown thief is now back to hit the privacy whether it be the private relations, private photographs, and many more. In this paper the author is trying to discuss and explore these new versions of hybrid crimes and also with the possible remedies to get safeguard against it.

HYBRID CYBER CRIMES

Gone the days when people thought that they have mastered the types of all possible crimes in cyber world, now the netizens have thrown a new challenge on us to deal and understand new types of hybrid cyber crime like- Trolling, Sexting, Doxxing, and Revenge Porn. The author will deal with each one of them individually.

TROLLING

It is an online abuse or we can also say that it is a kind of hate speech. India may soon see the first high profile arrest of an internet troll. On the complaint of a woman television journalist, Delhi Police registered an FIR in June this year against a conspicuous though anonymous Twitter handle. Swati Chaturvedi alleged the handle belonged to a senior journalist who heaped sexual abuse on her and harassed her online, goading his 40,000 odd followers also to troll her. Unlike other victims who either wind up their account or block abusers, the journalist lodged a case under the IPC for stalking, defamation, and outraging the modesty of a woman. Its effect was instant the handle disappeared and the offensive tweets were deleted. Though the abuser remains free, police sources indicate they have zeroed in on his identity . The delay in arrest and prosecution of such cases remains the central challenge for the Indian legal framework when it deals with online abuse through laws that are basically aimed at offline crimes. Till March year 2015, the government used Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000

as the remedy for all online abuse, but the Supreme Court struck it off from the law books. The apex court found the section to be not just “vaguely worded

“but also in violation of the Constitution since it criminalized speech on the subjective annoyance of a user. SC further faulted the provision for creating a new offence only on the basis of the medium used for communication. Section 499 and 507 of IPC along with section 66E of IT Act are attracted here. Some argue that trolling is not a pure crime but the result subsequent to it makes this a serious crime as people suffering from it sometime may commit suicide. People in cyber space need to learn and understand that the anonymous act which they do through trolling when catched will put them behind the bars.

SEXTING

Sexting is the act of sending, receiving or forwarding sexually explicit messages or photos via cellphone, computer or other digital device. The term `sext' was first used by the media in 2005 and was also considered for the New Oxford American Dictionary 2009 Word of the Year. The after effects of sexting are serious in nature like- Embarrassment, Humiliation, Loss of Control, Retaliation, Sextortion, and Losing out on Good Opportunities etc.

DOXXING

Doxxing is an internet-based practice of researching and broadcasting (leaking) private or personally identifiable information (such as names, address, phone numbers, photographs, relatives and much more) about an individual. The data is often pulled from social media websites, searching publicly available databases, hacking and social engineering, which is then released publicly against the person‟s wishes.

Doxxing may be performed out of general curiosity about a person or for the purpose of blackmailing or taking revenge by exposing their vital information. In the latter, the victim can have serious consequences on health, livelihood and relationship.

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2 REVENGE PORN –

The Internet age has provided us a new medium to express ourselves. But the misuse of this technology is rampant. The need to document every aspect of our private life on the Internet has created new and complex problems. Numerous websites have now become a platform for a new form of online abuse that is bringing out the uglier side of relationships when breakups are less than cordial. Posting explicit pictures or videos of an ex-lover or spouse has become the all-new rage to let off steam and get back at your partner. This is called „Revenge Porn‟. Although this form of harassment is not particularly new, the term “revenge porn” has been coined only recently. Revenge porn is a trend that has taken over the cyberspace and is fast becoming the cruellest method of coping for jilted partners or lovers. The perpetrators are almost always those closest to us. Thus, moments captured privately are no longer private if you decide to dump that partner or divorce a bitter spouse. Many a times ex lovers use intimate pictures and videos as tools for blackmailing their exes in a bid to either get them back in their lives or to completely malign their reputation. Thus the impact of revenge porn is more than the shame and shock that one might feel when they discover themselves to be the victims of this crime. The immediate real time effect is the social stigmatization of the victim by blaming them for the pictures and questioning their character.

This can and has lead to depression, social alienation and in some extreme cases suicide attempts by the victim who cannot handle the pressure of dealing with such targeted vengeance. Several cases of revenge porn have been reported and latest is the Kamlesh Vaswani v UOI where petitioner has asked the Court to direct the Government to block all pornography over the Internet came up before the bench headed by the Chief Justice today. The petitioner stated that they have filed an affidavit highlighting the issue of revenge porn. The Court agreed with the seriousness of the matter and agreed to look at the issue of revenge porn. However, the Chief Justice refused to passed any interim order in the matter and stated that the Court cannot interfere in what adults do inside the four walls of

their house and doing so may be violate of their Article 21 rights.

REMEDIES-

Like other types of fraud, cyber crime can be defeated through knowledge, common sense, and a few well placed security measures. All the crime including the hybrid crimes discussed in the paper are most hardly affecting children who many a times believe that they have grown in all senses but factually are still considered as children (sweet and innocent). The measures to curb new type of cyber crimes are

1. Don‟t do acts Online, What you wouldn‟t do face to face with strangers or lesser known people.

2. Talk to your kids about these issues on regular intervals in order to make them understand the pros and cons.

3. It's good to avoid sending a sexting picture even to your husband, but still if you have to, make sure you crop the face. In case of a photo leak, your identity will not be revealed 4. Use app like snapchat which sets a timer to your pictures so they exist only for a few seconds.

4. You never know who is snoops and peeps around, so delete all kinds of intimate communication between you and your partner, and advise him to do so as well.

REFERENCES

1. Dean-Law and Governance- Jayoti Vidyapith Womens University, Jaipur.

2. Ph.D. Scholar- Jayoti Vidyapeeth Womens University, Jaipur.

3. Oct 10 2015 : The Times of India (Delhi)

4. Any person who sends, by means of a computer resource or a communication device,—

i. any information that is grossly offensive or has menacing character; or ii. any information which he knows to be false, but for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred or ill will, persistently by making use of such computer resource or a communication device,

iii. any electronic mail or electronic mail message for the purpose of

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3 causing annoyance or inconvenience or to deceive or to mislead the addressee or recipient about the origin of such messages, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and with fine.

5. Shreya Singhal v Union of India AIR 2015 SC 1523

6. Whoever, by words either spoken or intended to be read, or by signs or by visible representations, makes or publishes any imputation concerning any person intending to harm, or knowing or having reason to believe that such imputation will harm, the reputation of such person, is said, except in the cases hereinafter expected, to defame that person.

7. Criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication - Whoev¬er commits the offence of criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication, or having taken precaution to conceal the name or abode of the person from whom the threat comes, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, in addition to the punishment provided for the offence by the last preceding section.

8. Whoever, intentionally or knowingly captures, publishes or transmits the image of a private area of any person without his or her consent, under circumstances violating the privacy of that person, shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to three years or with fine not exceeding two lakh rupees, or with both

9. (2014)6 SCC 705