Introduction :-

      Crime is a legal concept and has the sanction of law. Crime or offense is “a legal wrong that can be followed by criminal proceedings which may result in punishment.[1]”

           It could be hackers vandalizing your site, viewing confidential information, stealing trade secrets or intellectual property with the use of the internet. It can also include ‘denial of services’ and virus attacks preventing regular traffic from reaching your site. Cyber crimes are not limited to outsiders except in case of viruses and concerning security-related cyber crimes that are usually done by the employees of a particular company who can easily access the password and data storage of the company for their benefit. Cybercrime also includes crimes committed using computers in furtherance of crimes such as financial crimes, sale of illegal items, pornography, online gambling, intellectual property crimes, email, fraud, forgery, online defamation, cybercrime, and unauthorized access. theft of a computer system, information in electronic form, email bombing, physical damage to a computer system, etc. Crime is a legal concept and is punishable by law. A crime or misdemeanor is “a legal wrong that can be followed by criminal proceedings and that can result in punishment”.[2]

          However, substantial legal questions have arisen in many contexts. The World Wide Web allows users to circulate content in the form of text, images, videos, and sounds. Websites are created and updated for many useful purposes, but they can also be used to circulate offensive content such as pornography, hate speech, and decorative materials. There is also an upsurge in incidents of financial fraud and cheating in commercial transactions conducted online.

          The digital medium provides a convenient shield of anonymity and fake identities. Errant persons become moreemboldened in their offensive behaviour if they think that they will not face any consequences. In recent years, there have been numerous reports of Internet users easily unsolicited emails which often contain obscene language and amount to harassment. To post personal information about themselves on job and marriage on websites or social networking sites is the point at the receiving end of ‘cyber-stalking’. Women and miners who bought their contact details become especially vulnerable since lumpen elements such as sex offenders can use this information to target potential victims.

Cybercrime is a global phenomenon. With the advent of technology, cybercrime and victimization of women are on the high and it poses a major threat to the security of a person as a whole. Even though India is one of the very few countries to enact IT Act 2000 to combat cyber crimes, issues regarding women will remain untouched in this Act. The same act as the downtrodden offense is hacking, publishing obscene material on the net, and tempering the data as a punishable offense. But the grave threat to the security of women, in general, is not covered fully by this act. Cyberbullying can affect everyone, including children[3]. 

        Types of Cybercrime that are Committed against Society[4]:-

Amongst the various cybercrime committed against society at large the crimes which can be mentioned as especially targeting ones are as follow:-

1. 1. Harassment via emails.

1. 1. Cyber-Stalking

1. 1. Cyber pornography.

1. 1. Defamation.

1. 1. Morphing.

1. 1. Email spoofing.

1. 1. National Security

1. 1. Jurisdiction

         A brief discussion of these offenses is as follows:

1. 1. Harassment through e-mails is not a new concept. This is very similar to bullying. Harassment includes blackmail, threats, harassment and even email fraud.is not a new concept. It is very similar to harassing through letters. Harassment includes blackmailing, threatening, bullying and even cheating via email. E-harassments are similar to letter harassment but create problems quite often when posted from fake ids.

1. 1. Cyber Stalking is one of the most talked about net crimes in the modern world. The The Oxford dictionary defines stalking as “the track of a thief”. In cyberstalking, a person’s movements are monitored on the Internet by sending (sometimes threatening) messages to message boards used by the victim, entering chat rooms that the victim often uses and constantly bombarding the victim with which emails, etc. Online stalking usually happens to women. . , being chased by men or adult predators chasing children. Typically, the cyber stalker’s victim is new on the web and inexperienced with the rules of netiquette and Internet safety. Their main targets are mostly females, children, emotionally weak or unstable, etc. It is believed that over 75% of the sufferers are female. The motives behind cyberstalking have been divided into four reasons, namely, sexual harassment, obsession for love, revenge, and hate, and ego and power trips. Cyberstalkers target and harass their victims via websites, chat rooms, discussion forums, open publishing websites (e.g. blogs and Indy media), and emails. The availability of free email and website space, as well as the anonymity provided by these chat rooms and forums, has contributed to the increase of cyberstalking as a form of harassment[5].

1. 1. Cyber Pornography is another thread for female netizens. This includes pornographic websites; pornographic magazines produced on computers (for publishing and printing material) and on the Internet (for uploading and broadcasting pornographic images, photos, videos, writings, etc.)[6]

          The Internet has provided a medium for the facilitation of crimes like pornography. Cyber porn as it is popularly called is widespread. Almost 50% of websites exhibit pornographic material on the Internet today. For graphic materials can be reproduced more quickly and cheaply and new media like hard disks, floppy disks, and CD-ROMs. The new technology is not merely an extension of the existing forms like text, photographs, and images. Apart from still pictures and images, full-motion video clips and complete movies are also available. Another great disadvantage with the media like this is its easy availability and accessibility to children who can now log on to the pornographic websites from their own houses in relative anonymity and the social and legal deterrents associated with physically purchasing an adult magazine from the stand are no longer present. Furthermore, there are more serious offenses that have universal disapproval like child pornography, and are far easier for offenders to hide and propagate through the medium of the Internet[7].

1. 1. Cyber Defamation[8]: Cyber tort including legal and defamation is another common crime against women in the net. E.g. someone publishes defamatory matters about someone on a website or sends emails containing defamatory information to that person’s entire friends. When any sort of defamation is done using the internet then it is called Cyber Defamation. Cyber defamation is a crime that is conducted in cyberspace mostly through the medium of the Internet to defame a person or a company. With the increasing use of the Internet around the globe, the graph of cyber defamation is increasing like anything. All countries are incorporating cyber laws and amending them to combat this very serious cyber crime called Cyber Defamation[9].

• • Morphing: Morphing is editing the original picture by an authorized user of a fake identity. It was identified that females are downloaded by fake users and again reposted/uploaded on different websites by creating fake profiles after editing them. This amounts to a violation of the I.T. Act, 2000, and attracts sections 43 & 66 of the said act. The violator can also be booked under Indian Penal Code. The Times of India reported that in October, a Delhi-based beautician told the police that a photograph was flashed on a porno portal along with a mobile number[10].

• • Email Spoofing: A Spoofed email may be said to be one, which misrepresents its origin. It shows its origin to be different from what it originates. A review in the cyberLawTimes.com shows that India has crossed the danger mark in cybercrime targeting women and children. Statistics show, and law enforcers confirm, that the maximum number of cyber crimes related to obscenity occurred in Mumbai last year. There were at least 40 cases in 2006 (of which only 10 were registered), a steep rise from only five cases in 2005. Delhi was also close behind, with 30 obscenity-related cases (nine registered), but top in case of hacking. Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune reported only a handful of obscene crimes but saw a greater incidence of hacking[11].

          The more common method used by men is to email vulgar photographs of themselves to women, praising their duty, and asking them for a date or enquiring how much they charge for ‘services’. Besides sending explicit messages via email, SMS, and Chat, many also more photographs – placing the victim’s face on another, usually nude, body. In another instance, a couple entered an Internet chat room agreeing to strip for each other using a web camera. The guys stripped, but the person at the other end was another man and his friends, who didn’t. They recorded it and uploaded the clip on a porno website. These things happen in every city but only one in every 500 cases is reported[12].

• • National Security: – E-mail as it is popularly referred to start becoming utilized for military applications. With the development of the World Wide Web, this technology was inducted into the public domain. This is the starting point at the virtual medium started being utilized for criminal activities, and with the growth of terrorism, the terrorist also adopted this technology. Terrorist organizations all over the world have started using the Internet to spread their ideology, and also for bringing inability to their nefarious activities against any state or society at large. Further, there are attempts by the terrorist organization to disrupt the communications hubs of the states, so that their activities could be carried out with greater effect causing larger damage. In the context of national security, especially viz. military applications information plays a major role, based on which military victories become decisive. This game of intelligence and counter-intelligence is carried out in the virtual medium as most of the military activities and information management of most of the advanced nation is based on the use of computers and the Internet. Thus disrupting the information network of the advanced nations through the virtual medium has become a cost-effective technique resorted to by the nation that does not have military supremacy[13].

• • Jurisdiction: Territorial limitation on the Internet becomes peripheral in the virtual medium is the web pages on the net can reach almost every province in the nation and conceivably almost every nation on the globe. This is the point of friction between the cyber world and the territorial world begins as in the territorial world there are limitations set up by the sovereignty of the nation which is not the case in the cyber world. The judicial system can be concept effectively if it is well regulated; it is these regulations that identify every functional aspect of the judicial system including the jurisdiction of the courts[14].

          A court to deliver effective judgment must have proper and well-defined jurisdiction, as without the jurisdiction the court’s judgments would be ineffective. Jurisdictions are of two types namely, personal and subject matter jurisdictions, and for judgment to be effective both must exist contemporaneously. Further, the conventional requirement is to apart can sue another at the place where the defendant resides or whether the cause of action arises. This itself is the problem with Internet jurisdiction on the net it is difficult to establish the above two criteria with certainty. Issues of this nature have contributed to the complete confusion and contradiction that plague judicial decisions in the area of Internet jurisdiction. The IT Act 2000 passed in India is a perfect example of an ambiguous law in the area of jurisdiction in the content of the Internet. This act would apply to the whole of India and otherwise, it applies also to any offence or contravention there under committed outside India by any person[15]. It may apply to Any offense or contravention committed outside India by any person if the actor’s conduct constituting the offense or contravention involves a computer, computer systems, or computer network located in India[16]. Such a provision appears to be against the principle of justice. Going to the next level, let’s that even if the Indian Corps successfully assert jurisdiction and pass a judgment as per the above provisions of the IT Act, 2000, the other question that arises will the foreign courts implement such a judgment? In the case of the about predicament, the only way to resolve such a dispute is using having an extradition treaty with the host nation and India, further, it has been suggested that the Indian courts developed justifiable grounds on which the extraterritorial jurisdiction may validly exercise is done by the American judiciary[17].

From the about becomes necessary to appreciate the complexities involved and thus it becomes indispensable to understand the nature of the cybercrime, and whether the existing penal laws are sufficient.

Laws relating to cybercrime and offenses against money in India in the loopholes in the information technology act 2000.

          Even though Chapter XI of the IT Act gives the success tampering with computer source documents[18], hacking with computer systems[19], publishing of information which is obscene in electronic form[20], access to the protected system[21], breach of confidentiality and privacy[22], and publication for fraudulent purposes[23] still needs to be modified. It does not mention any crimes specified against women and children.

          The elementary problems, which are associated with cybercrimes, are jurisdiction, loss of evidence, lack of cyber Army, and cyber savvy judges who are the need of the day. The judiciary plays a vital role in shaping the enactment according to the order of the day. One such stage, which needs appreciation, is the PIL, which the camera High Court has accepted to an email. Today with the growing arms of cyberspace the territorial boundary seems to vanish does the concept of terror jurisdiction as envisaged under S.16 of C.P.C and S. 2 of the IPC will have to give way to alternative methods of dispute resolution?

            Again under no section in the IT Act 2000, is obscenity-personal viewing-is an offense, in fact like in IPC S. 292 if it is true that you have published or transmitted or caused to be published in the electronic form only then under section 67 it can be an offense. Lastly, the IT Act 2000 does not mention typical cyber crimes like cyber stalking, morphing, and email spoofing as offenses[24].

Conclusion

          In the present scenario of cybercrimes are increasing to an alarming extent, the present need of the hour is to have a broad-based convention dealing with criminal substance law matters, criminal procedure questions as well as International criminal procedures and agreements. To overcome the difficulties, necessary amendments must be made to the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1873. Moreover, India at present does not have a proper extradition law to deal with crimes being committed over the Internet.

     The biggest problem of cybercrime lies in the modus operandi and the motive of the cybercriminals. Cyberspace is a transit for many people, including offenders. But people do live in cyberspace, they come and go like any other place. This nature provides offenders the chance to escape from the commission of cybercrime. Many websites and blogs were secure for the safety of women and children on the net. But s, till the cybercrime against woman are on rice.

         Change is inevitable and dilemmas that advancement in technology poses cannot be avoided, the truth is that criminal search in their method and health started relying on advanced technology, and to deal with them the society the legal and law enforcement authorities, the private corporations, and organization will help to change. Further, such experts must not only be knowledgeable but must also provide the necessary technical hardware and software so that they can efficiently fight cybercriminals. Thus necessary facilities must be established in various parts of the country so that crime in the virtual world cannot be contained.

     Another aspect that needs to be highlighted is that a culture of continuous education and learning needs to be included among the legal and law enforcement authorities because the information technology field is very dynamic is the knowledge of today becomes obsolete in a very short time.

       From this it can be internal or cannot afford to be static, it is to change with the changing times, and viz. cyberspace this is all more required, as there are many applications of the technology that can be used for the betterment of the men and, similarly it equally true that such application can also be used for the determinant of the mankind. The bottom line is that the law should be made flexible so that it can easily adjust to the needs of society and technological development.

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[1]  http://www.techterms.com/definition/cybercrime

[2]   http://www.legalindia.in/cyber-crimes-and-the-law

[3]   http://debaraticyberspace.blogspot.in/

[4]   http://www.legalindia.in/cyber-crimes-and-the-law 

[5]  Dr.B.Muthukumaran, “Cyber Crime Scenario In India” Criminal Investigation Department Review- January,

   2008                                                             

[6]   http://cyberlawpioneers.com/index.php/cyber-pornography/

[7]   Rohas Nagpal, “Cyber Crime & Digital Evidence –Indian Perspective”, Asian School of Cyber Laws

[8]   Section 499 IPC / Section 67 IT Act

[9]   http://cybercrimeindia.org/defamation.php

[10]  http://debaraticyberspace.blogspot.in/2013/04/no-relief-for-women-from-stalking-and.html   

[11]   http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/definition/email-spoofing

[12]   http://knowcybercrime121.blogspot.in/2010/05/spoofing.html

[13]   Lior Tabansky, “Cybercrime: A National Security Issue?”, Military and Strategic Affairs, Volume 4 , No. 3 ,December 2012

[14]  Abhay Pratap Singh and Pranay Bagdi,“Cyber Crime And Its Jurisdiction In India”, Students of 6th    

    Semester National Law University – Jodhpur, India (BBA.,LLb {Hons.})

[15]  Sec. 1(2) of Information Technology Act, 2000

[16]  Sec. 75(2) of Information Technology Act, 2000

[17]   Nandan Kamath ‘Law Relating to Computers, Intrenet And E-Commerce’ pg 53

[18]  Sec. 65 of Information Technology Act, 2000

[19]  Sec. 66 of Information Technology Act, 2000

[20]  Sec. 67 of Information Technology Act, 2000

[21]  Sec. 70 of Information Technology Act, 2000

[22]   Sec. 72 of Information Technology Act, 2000

[23]   Sec. 74 of Information Technology Act, 2000

[24]   N. S. Nappinai, “Cyber Crime Law in India: Has Law Kept Pace with Emerging Trends? An Empirical Study”, Journal of International Commercial Law and Technology, Vol. 5, Issue 1 (2010)