Meaning

Any criminal activity which is been done by using a Computer or any network device.

For Example,

Sending messages for extortion on phone, Facebook, Instagram etc.is a cyber crime. Also, stealing the Debit/ Credit Card details for illegally transferring amount is also a cyber crime.

Few days back, someone post his used furniture for sale on one of the leading website. Just after few minutes of posing, she received a call from a buyer and he offered to pay full quoted amount and asked for Google Pay details so that he can transfer money into seller’s account. Somehow, the seller got into the trap of buyer and ended up transferring approx. Rs. 85000 from her account to buyer’s account. These type of a Cyber Crimes are very common now a days.

The very purpose of cyber crimes is to get money and is committed mostly by cyber criminals and hackers.

These could be political or personal. Some of the common cyber crimes are hacking, cyber stalking, denial of service attack (DDoS), virus dissemination, software piracy, online banking debit/credit card fraud & phishing, Intellectual Property Rights violations Etc.

Most of us, at some stage of our life, faced the incidents of cyber crime, like online shopping fraud, social media account hacking etc. But, many of us avoid filing the complaint against such incidents for the many reasons like shortage of time and money, lack of interest, and lack of knowledge etc.

Cyber Crime against women and children

• Women are often subjected to cyber crimes such as Cyber harassment, online stalking, cyber pornography, cyber defamation, matrimonial frauds and much more.
• Recording moments of intimacy on smartphones is extremely prevalent amongst today’s couples leading to incident of blackmailing and insinuation, report the matter under Section 66E, 67, 67A, and 67B of Information Technology Act, 2000 (IT Act).
• Children including teenagers are most soft targets for cyber criminals as they manage their online presence without adult guidance. Any publishing and transmitting of material depicting children in sexuality explicit act, etc. Punished under Section 67B of IT Act, 2000 and Section 14, and 15 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.

Where and How we can file complaint against Cyber crime

• According to IT Act, 2000, a cyber crime comes under the purview of global jurisdiction. Hence a cyber crime complaint can be filed from anywhere in India.
• You can register a Complaint against cyber-crime on online portal of government https://cybercrime.gov.in/Default.aspx
• One can also register a complaint by give a call at Government Helpline No. 155260 from 9:00 Am to 6:00 Pm.
• You can file a written complaint at any nearest Cyber Cell and FIR/ Zero FIR at Police Station.

Punishment of Cyber crimes in various Acts

• Section 65 to 74 of IT act, 2000 deals with punishment of various cyber crimes which range to 3 years to Life Imprisonment and fine.
• All Cyber Crimes do not come under the Information Technology Act, 2000. To deal new type of cyber crimes such as tampering of source code, hacking and publication of obscene information in electronic form other Acts can be invoked.
• Section 384, 420, 465, 500, 506 of Indian Penal Code deals with various cyber Crimes which range to 2 years to 7 years of imprisonment and fine.
• Section14 and 15 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 deals with Punishment of Children Pornography which range to 3 years to 7 years imprisonment and fine.

Therefore, it is advisable not to keep silent in case of cyber crime and raise alarm and take appropriate legal sanction.