CYBER LAW & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

by Talwant Singh Addl. Distt. & Sessions Judge, Delhi

Success in any field of human activity leads to crime that needs mechanisms to control it.
Legal provisions should provide assurance to users, empowerment to law enforcement
agencies and deterrence to criminals. The law is as stringent as its enforcement. Crime is no
longer limited to space, time or a group of people. Cyber space creates moral, civil and
criminal wrongs. It has now given a new way to express criminal tendencies. Bac in !""#,
less than !##,### people were able to log on to the Internet worldwide. $ow around %##
million people are hooed up to surf the net around the globe.
&ntil recently, many information technology 'IT( professionals laced awareness of and
interest in the cyber crime phenomenon. In many cases, law enforcement officers have
laced the tools needed to tacle the problem) old laws didn*t +uite fit the crimes being
committed, new laws hadn*t +uite caught up to the reality of what was happening, and there
were few court precedents to loo to for guidance. ,urthermore, debates over privacy issues
hampered the ability of enforcement agents to gather the evidence needed to prosecute these
new cases. ,inally, there was a certain amount of antipathy-or at the least, distrust-
between the two most important players in any effective fight against cyber crime. law
enforcement agencie and com!"ter !rofeional# /et close cooperation between the two
is crucial if we are to control the cyber crime problem and mae the Internet a safe 0place1
for its users.
Law enforcement personnel understand the criminal mindset and now the basics of
gathering evidence and bringing offenders to 2ustice. IT personnel understand computers
and networs, how they wor, and how to trac down information on them. 3ach has half of
the ey to defeating the cyber criminal.
IT professionals need good definitions of cybercrime in order to now when 'and what( to
report to police, but law enforcement agencies must have statutory definitions of specific
crimes in order to charge a criminal with an offense. The first step in specifically defining
individual cybercrimes is to sort all the acts that can be considered cybercrimes into
organi4ed categories.
$nite% Nation& 'efinition of C()ercrime
Cybercrime spans not only state but national boundaries as well. 5erhaps we should loo to
international organi4ations to provide a standard definition of the crime. 6t the Tenth
&nited $ations Congress on the 5revention of Crime and Treatment of 7ffenders, in a
worshop devoted to the issues of crimes related to computer networs, cybercrime was
broen into two categories and defined thus.
a# Cybercrime in a narrow sense 'computer crime(. 6ny illegal behavior directed by means
of electronic operations that targets the security of computer systems and the data processed
by them.
)# Cybercrime in a broader sense 'computer8related crime(. 6ny illegal behavior committed
by means of, or in relation to, a computer system or networ, including such crimes as
illegal possession 9and: offering or distributing information by means of a computer system
or networ.
7f course, these definitions are complicated by the fact that an act may be illegal in one
nation but not in another.
There are more concrete examples, including
i# &nauthori4ed access
ii ;amage to computer data or programs
iii Computer sabotage
i* &nauthori4ed interception of communications
* Computer espionage
These definitions, although not completely definitive, do give us a good starting point-one
that has some international recognition and agreement-for determining 2ust what we mean
by the term cybercrime.
In Indian law, cyber crime has to be voluntary and willful, an act or omission that adversely
affects a person or property. The IT 6ct provides the bacbone for e8commerce and India*s
approach has been to loo at e8governance and e8commerce primarily from the promotional
aspects looing at the vast opportunities and the need to sensiti4e the population to the
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possibilities of the information age. There is the need to tae in to consideration the security
aspects.
In the present global situation where cyber control mechanisms are important we need to
push cyber laws. Cyber Crimes are a new class of crimes to India rapidly expanding due to
extensive use of internet. =etting the right lead and maing the right interpretation are very
important in solving a cyber crime. The > stage continuum of a criminal case starts from
!er!etration to regitration to re!orting, in*etigation, !roec"tion, a%+"%ication and
e,ec"tion. The system can not be stronger than the weaest lin in the chain. In India, there
are ?# million policemen to train apart from !<,### strong @udiciary. 5olice in India are
trying to become cyber crime savvy and hiring people who are trained in the area. 3ach
police station in ;elhi will have a computer soon which will be connected to the Aead
Buarter.. The pace of the investigations however can be faster) 2udicial sensitivity and
nowledge need to improve. ,ocus needs to be on educating the police and district
2udiciary. IT Institutions can also play a role in this area.
Technology nuances are important in a spam infested environment where privacy can be
compromised and individuals can be sub2ected to become a victim unsuspectingly. Ce need
to sensiti4e our investigators and 2udges to the nuances of the system. Dost cyber criminals
have a counter part in the real world. If loss of property or persons is caused the criminal is
punishable under the I5C also. Since the law enforcement agencies find it is easier to handle
it under the I5C, IT 6ct cases are not getting reported and when reported are not necessarily
dealt with under the IT 6ct. 6 lengthy and intensive process of learning is re+uired.
6 whole series of initiatives of cyber forensics were undertaen and cyber law procedures
resulted out of it. This is an area where learning taes place every day as we are all
beginners in this area. Ce are looing for solutions faster than the problems can get
invented. Ce need to move faster than the criminals.
The real issue is how to prevent cyber crime. ,or this, there is need to raise the probability
of apprehension and conviction. India has a law on evidence that considers admissibility,
authenticity, accuracy, and completeness to convince the 2udiciary. The challenge in cyber
crime cases includes getting evidence that will stand scrutiny in a foreign court.
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,or this India needs total international cooperation with specialised agencies of different
countries. 5olice has to ensure that they have sei4ed exactly what was there at the scene of
crime, is the same that has been analysed and the report presented in court is based on this
evidence. It has to maintain the chain of custody. The threat is not from the intelligence of
criminals but from our ignorance and the will to fight it. The law is stricter now on
producing evidence especially where electronic documents are concerned.
The computer is the target and the tool for the perpetration of crime. It is used for the
communication of the criminal activity such as the in2ection of a virusEworm which can
crash entire networs.
The Information Technology 'IT( 6ct, <###, specifies the acts which have been made
punishable. Since the primary ob2ective of this 6ct is to create an enabling environment for
commercial use of I.T., certain omissions and commissions of criminals while using
computers have not been included. Cith the legal recognition of 3lectronic Fecords and the
amendments made in the several sections of the I5C vide the IT 6ct, <###, several offences
having bearing on cyber8arena are also registered under the appropriate sections of the I5C.
;uring the year <##?, G# cases were registered under IT 6ct as compared to ># cases during
the previous year thereby reporting a decline of !H.? percent in <##? over <##<. 7f the total
G# cases registered under IT 6ct <###, around ?? percent '<# cases( relate to 7bscene
5ublication E Transmission in electronic form, normally nown as cases of cyber
pornography. !> persons were arrested for committing such offences during <##?.
There were <! cases of Aacing of computer systems wherein !I persons were arrested in
<##?. 7f the total '<!( Aacing cases, the cases relating to LossE;amage of computer
resourceEutility under Sec GG'!( of the IT 6ct were to the tune of G< percent '!? cases( and
that related to Aacing under Section GG'<( of IT 6ct were ?I percent 'Icases(.
;uring <##?, a total of H!! cases were registered under I5C Sections as compared to >?I
such cases during <##< thereby reporting a significant decline of HH percent in <##? over
<##<. 6ndhra 5radesh reported more than half of such cases '<!I out of H!!( '%? percent(.
H
7f the H!! cases registered under I5C, ma2ority of the crimes fall under ? categories vi4.
Criminal Breach of Trust or ,raud '<G"(, ,orgery 'I"( and Counterfeiting '%?(.
Though, these offences fall under the traditional I5C crimes, the cases had the cyber tones
wherein computer, Internet or its related aspects were present in the crime and hence they
were categorised as Cyber Crimes under I5C.
;uring <##?, number of cases under Cyber Crimes relating to Counterfeiting of
currencyEStamps stood at %? wherein !!I persons were arrested during <##?. 7f the H>,H>I
cases reported under Cheating, the Cyber ,orgery 'I"( accounted for #.< per cent. 7f the
total Criminal Breach of Trust cases '!?,H?<(, the Cyber frauds '<G"( accounted for <
percent. 7f the Counterfeiting offences '<,#%%(, Cyber Counterfeiting '%?( offences
accounted for <.G percent.
6 total of H>% persons were arrested in the country for Cyber Crimes under I5C during
<##?. 7f these, %?.G percent offenders '<%%( were taen into custody for offences under
Criminal Breach of TrustE,raud 'Cyber( and <!.H percent '!#<( for offences under JCyber
,orgery*.

The age8wise profile of the arrested persons showed that H% percent were in the age8group
of ?#8H% years, <I.% percent of the offenders were in the age8group of H%8G# years and !!
offenders were aged G# years and above. =u2arat reported < offenders who were below !I
years of age.
,raudEIllegal gain '!<#( accounted for G# per cent of the total Cyber Crime motives reported
in the country. =reedEDoney '!% cases( accounted for >.% percent of the Cyber Crimes
reported. 3ve8teasing and Aarassment 'I cases( accounted for around H per cent. Cyber
Suspects include $eighbours E ,riends E Felatives '"!(, ;isgrunted employees '!!(,
Business Competitors '"(, Cracers Students E 5rofessional learners '?(.
Cybercrime is not on the decline. The latest statistics show that cybercrime is actually on the
rise. Aowever, it is true that in India, cybercrime is not reported too much about.
Conse+uently there is a false sense of complacency that cybercrime does not exist and that
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society is safe from cybercrime. This is not the correct picture. The fact is that people in our
country do not report cybercrimes for many reasons. Dany do not want to face harassment
by the police. There is also the fear of bad publicity in the media, which could hurt their
reputation and standing in society. 6lso, it becomes extremely difficult to convince the
police to register any cybercrime, because of lac of orientation and awareness about
cybercrimes and their registration and handling by the police.
6 recent survey indicates that for every %## cybercrime incidents that tae place, only %#
are reported to the police and out of that only one is actually registered. These figures
indicate how difficult it is to convince the police to register a cybercrime. The establishment
of cybercrime cells in different parts of the country was expected to boost cybercrime
reporting and prosecution. Aowever, these cells haven*t +uite ept up with expectations.
$eti4ens should not be under the impression that cybercrime is vanishing and they must
reali4e that with each passing day, cyberspace becomes a more dangerous place to be in,
where criminals roam freely to execute their criminals intentions encouraged by the so8
called anonymity that internet provides.
The absolutely poor rate of cyber crime conviction in the country has also not helped the
cause of regulating cybercrime. There has only been few cybercrime convictions in the
whole country, which can be counted on fingers. Ce need to ensure that we have
speciali4ed procedures for prosecution of cybercrime cases so as to tacle them on a priority
basis,. This is necessary so as to win the faith of the people in the ability of the system to
tacle cybercrime. Ce must ensure that our system provides for stringent punishment of
cybercrimes and cyber criminals so that the same acts as a deterrent for others.
T-reat .erce!tion
&K has the largest number of infected computers in the world followed by the &S and
China. ,inancial attacs are !G events per !###, the highest among all inds of attacs. The
&S is the leading source country for attacs but this has declined. China is second and
=ermany is third. It is hard to determine where the attac came from originally.
The number of viruses and worm variants rose sharply to >,?G# that is a GHL increase over
the previous reporting period and a ??<L increase over the previous year. There are !>,%##
variants of Cin.?< viruses. Threats to confidential information are on the rise with %HL of
G
the top %# reporting malicious code with the potential to expose such information. 5hishing
messages grew to H.% million from ! million between @uly and ;ecember <##H.
/ome In%ian Cae /t"%ie
0# ."ne Citi)an1 M!-ai/ Call Center Fra"%
&S M ?,%#,### from accounts of four &S customers were dishonestly transferred to bogus
accounts. This will give a lot of ammunition to those lobbying against outsourcing in &S.
Such cases happen all over the world but when it happens in India it is a serious matter and
we can not ignore it. It is a case of sourcing engineering. Some employees gained the
confidence of the customer and obtained their 5I$ numbers to commit fraud. They got these
under the guise of helping the customers out of difficult situations. Aighest security prevails
in the call centers in India as they now that they will lose their business. There was not as
much of breach of security but of sourcing engineering.
The call center employees are checed when they go in and out so they can not copy down
numbers and therefore they could not have noted these down. They must have remembered
these numbers, gone out immediately to a cyber cafN and accessed the Citiban accounts of
the customers.
6ll accounts were opened in 5une and the customers complained that the money from their
accounts was transferred to 5une accounts and that*s how the criminals were traced. 5olice
has been able to prove the honesty of the call center and has fro4en the accounts where the
money was transferred.
There is need for a strict bacground chec of the call center executives. Aowever, best of
bacground checs can not eliminate the bad elements from coming in and breaching
security. Ce must still ensure such checs when a person is hired. There is need for a
national I; and a national data base where a name can be referred to. In this case
preliminary investigations do not reveal that the criminals had any crime history. Customer
education is very important so customers do not get taen for a ride. Dost bans are guilt of
not doing this.
2# Ba3ee#com cae
>
C37 of Ba4ee.com was arrested in ;ecember <##H because a C; with ob2ectionable
material was being sold on the website. The C; was also being sold in the marets in ;elhi.
The Dumbai city police and the ;elhi 5olice got into action. The C37 was later released on
bail. This opened up the +uestion as to what ind of distinction do we draw between Internet
Service 5rovider and Content 5rovider. The burden rests on the accused that he was the
Service 5rovider and not the Content 5rovider. It also raises a lot of issues regarding how
the police should handle the cyber crime cases and a lot of education is re+uired.
4# /tate of Tamil Na%" 5 /"-a 6atti
The Case of Suhas Katti is notable for the fact that the conviction was achieved successfully
within a relatively +uic time of > months from the filing of the ,IF. Considering that
similar cases have been pending in other states for a much longer time, the efficient
handling of the case which happened to be the first case of the Chennai Cyber Crime Cell
going to trial deserves a special mention.

The case related to posting of obscene, defamatory and annoying message about a divorcee
woman in the yahoo message group. 38Dails were also forwarded to the victim for
information by the accused through a false e8mail account opened by him in the name of the
victim. The posting of the message resulted in annoying phone calls to the lady in the belief
that she was soliciting.

Based on a complaint made by the victim in ,ebruary <##H, the 5olice traced the accused to
Dumbai and arrested him within the next few days. The accused was a nown family friend
of the victim and was reportedly interested in marrying her. She however married another
person. This marriage later ended in divorce and the accused started contacting her once
again. 7n her reluctance to marry him, the accused too up the harassment through the
Internet.

7n <H8?8<##H Charge Sheet was filed uEs G> of IT 6ct <###, HG" and %#" I5C before The
Aon*ble 6ddl. CDD 3gmore by citing !I witnesses and ?H documents and material ob2ects.
The same was taen on file in C.C.$7.HGI#E<##H. 7n the prosecution side !< witnesses
were examined and entire documents were mared as 3xhibits.

I
The ;efence argued that the offending mails would have been given either by ex8husband
of the complainant or the complainant her self to implicate the accused as accused alleged to
have turned down the re+uest of the complainant to marry her.

,urther the ;efence counsel argued that some of the documentary evidence was not
sustainable under Section G% B of the Indian 3vidence 6ct. Aowever, the court relied upon
the expert witnesses and other evidence produced before it, including the witnesses of the
Cyber Cafe owners and came to the conclusion that the crime was conclusively proved.

Ld. 6dditional Chief Detropolitan Dagistrate, 3gmore, delivered the 2udgement on %8!!8#H
as follows.

7 T-e acc"e% i fo"n% g"ilt( of offence "n%er ection 89:; <=: I.C an% 9> of IT Act
2=== an% t-e acc"e% i con*icte% an% i entence% for t-e offence to "n%ergo RI for 2
(ear "n%er 89: I.C an% to !a( fine of R#<==?@an% for t-e offence "? <=: I.C
entence% to "n%ergo 0 (ear /im!le im!rionment an% to !a( fine of R#<==?@ an% for
t-e offence "? 9> of IT Act 2=== to "n%ergo RI for 2 (ear an% to !a( fine of
R#8===?@ All entence to r"n conc"rrentl(#1
The accused paid fine amount and he was lodged at Central 5rison, Chennai. This is
considered as the first case convicted under section G> of Information Technology 6ct <###
in India.
8# T-e Ban1 N/. Cae
The Ban $S5 case is the one where a management trainee of the ban was engaged to be
married. The couple exchanged many emails using the company computers. 6fter some
time the two broe up and the girl created fraudulent email ids such as
0indianbarassociations1 and sent emails to the boy*s foreign clients. She used the bans
computer to do this. The boy*s company lost a large number of clients and too the ban to
court. The ban was held liable for the emails sent using the ban*s system.
<# /MC .ne"matic AIn%iaB .*t# Lt%# *# Coge- 6watra
"
In IndiaOs first case of cyber defamation, a Court of ;elhi assumed 2urisdiction over a matter
where a corporate*s reputation was being defamed through emails and passed an important
ex8parte in2unction.
In this case, the defendant @ogesh Kwatra being an employ of the plaintiff company started
sending derogatory, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, filthy and abusive emails to his employers
as also to different subsidiaries of the said company all over the world with the aim to
defame the company and its Danaging ;irector Dr. F K Dalhotra. The plaintiff filed a suit
for permanent in2unction restraining the defendant from doing his illegal acts of sending
derogatory emails to the plaintiff.
7n behalf of the plaintiffs it was contended that the emails sent by the defendant were
distinctly obscene, vulgar, abusive, intimidating, humiliating and defamatory in nature.
Counsel further argued that the aim of sending the said emails was to malign the high
reputation of the plaintiffs all over India and the world. Ae further contended that the acts of
the defendant in sending the emails had resulted in invasion of legal rights of the plaintiffs.
,urther the defendant is under a duty not to send the aforesaid emails. It is pertinent to note
that after the plaintiff company discovered the said employ could be indulging in the matter
of sending abusive emails, the plaintiff terminated the services of the defendant.
6fter hearing detailed arguments of Counsel for 5laintiff, AonOble @udge of the ;elhi Aigh
Court passed an ex8parte ad interim in2unction observing that a prima facie case had been
made out by the plaintiff. Conse+uently, the ;elhi Aigh Court restrained the defendant from
sending derogatory, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, humiliating and abusive emails either to
the plaintiffs or to its sister subsidiaries all over the world including their Danaging
;irectors and their Sales and Dareting departments. ,urther, AonOble @udge also restrained
the defendant from publishing, transmitting or causing to be published any information in
the actual world as also in cyberspace which is derogatory or defamatory or abusive of the
plaintiffs.
!#
This order of ;elhi Aigh Court assumes tremendous significance as this is for the first time
that an Indian Court assumes 2urisdiction in a matter concerning cyber defamation and
grants an ex8parte in2unction restraining the defendant from defaming the plaintiffs by
sending derogatory, defamatory, abusive and obscene emails either to the plaintiffs or their
subsidiaries.
9# .ARLIAMENT ATTAC6 CA/E
Bureau of 5olice Fesearch and ;evelopment at Ayderabad had handled some of the top
cyber cases, including analysing and retrieving information from the laptop recovered from
terrorist, who attaced 5arliament. The laptop which was sei4ed from the two terrorists,
who were gunned down when 5arliament was under siege on ;ecember !? <##!, was sent
to Computer ,orensics ;ivision of B5F; after computer experts at ;elhi failed to trace
much out of its contents.
The laptop contained several evidences that confirmed of the two terrorists* motives,
namely the sticer of the Dinistry of Aome that they had made on the laptop and pasted on
their ambassador car to gain entry into 5arliament Aouse and the the fae I; card that one
of the two terrorists was carrying with a =overnment of India emblem and seal.
The emblems 'of the three lions( were carefully scanned and the seal was also craftly made
along with residential address of @ammu and Kashmir. But careful detection proved that it
was all forged and made on the laptop.
># An%-ra .ra%e- Ta, Cae
;ubious tactics of a prominent businessman from 6ndhra 5radesh was exposed after
officials of the department got hold of computers used by the accused person.
The owner of a plastics firm was arrested and Fs << crore cash was recovered from his
house by sleuths of the Pigilance ;epartment. They sought an explanation from him
regarding the unaccounted cash within !# days.
!!
The accused person submitted G,### vouchers to prove the legitimacy of trade and thought
his offence would go undetected but after careful scrutiny of vouchers and contents of his
computers it revealed that all of them were made after the raids were conducted.
It later revealed that the accused was running five businesses under the guise of one
company and used fae and computerised vouchers to show sales records and save tax.
D# /ONY#/AMBAN'H#COM CA/E
India saw its first cybercrime conviction recently. It all began after a complaint was filed by
Sony India 5rivate Ltd, which runs a website called www.sony8sambandh.com, targeting
$on Fesident Indians. The website enables $FIs to send Sony products to their friends and
relatives in India after they pay for it online.
The company undertaes to deliver the products to the concerned recipients. In Day <##<,
someone logged onto the website under the identity of Barbara Campa and ordered a Sony
Colour Television set and a cordless head phone.
She gave her credit card number for payment and re+uested that the products be delivered to
6rif 64im in $oida. The payment was duly cleared by the credit card agency and the
transaction processed. 6fter following the relevant procedures of due diligence and
checing, the company delivered the items to 6rif 64im.
6t the time of delivery, the company too digital photographs showing the delivery being
accepted by 6rif 64im.

The transaction closed at that, but after one and a half months the credit card agency
informed the company that this was an unauthori4ed transaction as the real owner had
denied having made the purchase.
The company lodged a complaint for online cheating at the Central Bureau of Investigation
which registered a case under Section H!I, H!" and H<# of the Indian 5enal Code.
The matter was investigated into and 6rif 64im was arrested. Investigations revealed that
6rif 64im, while woring at a call centre in $oida gained access to the credit card number
of an 6merican national which he misused on the company*s site.
!<
The CBI recovered the colour television and the cordless head phone.
In this matter, the CBI had evidence to prove their case and so the accused admitted his
guilt. The court convicted 6rif 64im under Section H!I, H!" and H<# of the Indian 5enal
Code - this being the first time that a cybercrime has been convicted.
The court, however, felt that as the accused was a young boy of <H years and a first8time
convict, a lenient view needed to be taen. The court therefore released the accused on
probation for one year.
The 2udgment is of immense significance for the entire nation. Besides being the first
conviction in a cybercrime matter, it has shown that the the Indian 5enal Code can be
effectively applied to certain categories of cyber crimes which are not covered under the
Information Technology 6ct <###. Secondly, a 2udgment of this sort sends out a clear
message to all that the law cannot be taen for a ride.
:# Nacom *# A+a( /oo% & Ot-er
In a landmar 2udgment in the case of $ational 6ssociation of Software and Service
Companies vs 62ay Sood Q 7thers, delivered in Darch, J#%, the ;elhi Aigh Court declared
Rphishing* on the internet to be an illegal act, entailing an in2unction and recovery of
damages.
3laborating on the concept of Jphishing*, in order to lay down a precedent in India, the court
stated that it is a form of internet fraud where a person pretends to be a legitimate
association, such as a ban or an insurance company in order to extract personal data from a
customer such as access codes, passwords, etc. 5ersonal data so collected by
misrepresenting the identity of the legitimate party is commonly used for the collecting
party*s advantage. court also stated, by way of an example, that typical phishing scams
involve persons who pretend to represent online bans and siphon cash from e8baning
accounts after conning consumers into handing over confidential baning details.
The ;elhi AC stated that even though there is no specific legislation in India to penalise
phishing, it held phishing to be an illegal act by defining it under Indian law as 0a
!?
misrepresentation made in the course of trade leading to confusion as to the source and
origin of the e8mail causing immense harm not only to the consumer but even to the person
whose name, identity or password is misused.1 The court held the act of phishing as passing
off and tarnishing the plaintiff*s image.
The plaintiff in this case was the $ational 6ssociation of Software and Service Companies
'$asscom(, India*s premier software association.
The defendants were operating a placement agency involved in head8hunting and
recruitment. In order to obtain personal data, which they could use for purposes of head8
hunting, the defendants composed and sent e8mails to third parties in the name of $asscom.
The high court recognised the trademar rights of the plaintiff and passed an ex8parte ad8
interim in2unction restraining the defendants from using the trade name or any other name
deceptively similar to $asscom. The court further restrained the defendants from holding
themselves out as being associates or a part of $asscom.
The court appointed a commission to conduct a search at the defendants* premises. Two
hard diss of the computers from which the fraudulent e8mails were sent by the defendants
to various parties were taen into custody by the local commissioner appointed by the court.
The offending e8mails were then downloaded from the hard diss and presented as evidence
in court.
;uring the progress of the case, it became clear that the defendants in whose names the
offending e8mails were sent were fictitious identities created by an employee on defendants*
instructions, to avoid recognition and legal action. 7n discovery of this fraudulent act, the
fictitious names were deleted from the array of parties as defendants in the case.
Subse+uently, the defendants admitted their illegal acts and the parties settled the matter
through the recording of a compromise in the suit proceedings. 6ccording to the terms of
compromise, the defendants agreed to pay a sum of Fs!.G million to the plaintiff as
damages for violation of the plaintiff*s trademar rights. The court also ordered the hard
diss sei4ed from the defendants* premises to be handed over to the plaintiff who would be
the owner of the hard diss.
!H
This case achieves clear milestones. It brings the act of 0phishing1 into the ambit of Indian
laws even in the absence of specific legislation) It clears the misconception that there is no
0damages culture1 in India for violation of I5 rights) This case reaffirms I5 owners* faith in
the Indian 2udicial system*s ability and willingness to protect intangible property rights and
send a strong message to I5 owners that they can do business in India without sacrificing
their I5 rights.
0=# Infinit( e@/earc- B.O Cae
The =urgaon B57 fraud has created an embarrassing situation for Infinity e8Search, the
company in which Dr Karan Bahree was employed.
6 British newspaper had reported that one of its undercover reporters had purchased
personal information of !,### British customers from an Indian call8center employee.
Aowever, the employee of Infinity eSearch, a $ew ;elhi8based web designing company,
who was reportedly involved in the case has denied any wrongdoing. The company has also
said that it had nothing to do with the incident.
In the instant case the 2ournalist used an intermediary, offered a 2ob, re+uested for a
presentation on a C; and later claimed that the C; contained some confidential data. The
fact that the C; contained such data is itself not substantiated by the 2ournalist.
In this sort of a situation we can only say that the 2ournalist has used SBriberyS to induce a
S7ut of normal behaviorS of an employee. This is not observation of a fact but creating a
factual incident by intervention. Investigation is still on in this matter.
E Talwant /ing-
6ddl. ;istrict Q Sessions @udge, ;elhi
38Dail8talwantTyahoo.com
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