ECONOMIC OFFENCES AND CYBER CRIME WITH REFERENCE TO INFORMATION

AND TECHNOLOGY ACT 2000

LAW AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ASSIGNMENT

SUBMITTED BY:—
QADIR JAVED
20166183
B.A.LL.B ( IX SEMESTER) (SELF-FINANCE)
FACULTY OF LAW, JAMIA MILLIA ISLAMIA

SUBMITTED TO:—
DR. GHULAM YAZDANI, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR ,FACULTY OF LAW, JAMIA
MILLIA ISLAMIA

04.11.2020
(DATE OF SUBMISSION)


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Abstract 3

Keywords: 3

INTRODUCTION: 4

CYBERCRIME: 5

CLASSIFICATION OF CYBER OFFENCES 7

VARIOUS CYBER ECONOMIC OFFENCES : 10

SOFTWARE PIRACY 10

credit card fraud 10

Phishing 11

Criticism 13

CONCLUSION 15

BIBLIOGRAPHY 16

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Abstract

Cyber crime is emerging as a serious threat. World wide governments, police departments and
intelligence units have started to react. Initiatives to curb cross border cyber threats are taking
shape. Indian police has initiated special cyber cells across the country and have started educating
the personnel. This paper is an attempt to provide a glimpse on cyber crime in India. This paper is
based on various reports from news media and news portal. Cyber crime has caused lot of damages
to individuals, organizations and even the Government. Cybercrime detection methods and
classification methods have came up with varying levels of success for preventing and protecting
data from such attacks. Several laws and methods have been introduced in order to prevent
cybercrime and the penalties are laid down to the criminals. Cyber crimes has also caused economic
damage to various persons, organisations and even the government.
The purpose of this assignment is to give overview of economic offences and cyber crime with
reference to Information act 2000.

Keywords:

Cyber crime, economic offences, information and technology act, software piracy, phishing.

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INTRODUCTION:

The introduction of the internet has brought tremendous changes to our lives. People of all fields are
increasingly using the computers to create, transmit and store information in the electronic form
instead of the traditional papers, documents. Information stored in electronic forms has many
advantages, it is cheaper, easier to store, easier to retrieve and for speedier to connection. Though it
has many advantages, it has been misused by many people in order to gain themselves or for the
sake or otherwise to harm others. The high and speedier connectivity to the world from any place
has developed many crimes and these increased offences led to the need for a law for protection.
Some countries have been rather been vigilant and formed some laws governing the net. In order to
keep in pace with the changing generation, the Indian parliament passed the law – Information
Technology Act, 2000.The IT Act 2000 has been conceptualized on the United Nations
Commissions on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) model law.

The Government of India enacted its Information Technology Act, 2000 with the objectives
stating officially as: “to provide legal recognition for transactions carried out by means of electronic
data interchange and other means of electronic communication, commonly referred to as “electronic
commerce”, which involve the use of alternatives to paper-based methods of communication and
storage of information, to facilitate electronic filing of documents with the Government agencies
and further to amend the Indian Penal Code, the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, the Bankers Books
Evidence Act, 1891 and the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 and for matters connected therewith
or incidental thereto.”

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CYBERCRIME:

Cybercrime is a generic term that refers to all criminal activities done using the medium of
computers, the Internet, cyberspace and the worldwide web. Computer crime, or Cybercrime, refers
to any crime that involves a computer and a network. The computer may have been used in the
commission of a crime, or it may be the target. Netcrime is criminal exploitation of the Internet.

Dr. Debarati Halder and Dr. K. Jaishankar (2011) define Cybercrimes as: “Offences that are
committed against individuals or groups of individuals with a criminal motive to intentionally harm
the reputation of the victim or cause physical or mental harm to the victim directly or indirectly,
using modern telecommunication networks such as Internet (Chat rooms, emails, notice boards and
groups) and mobile phones (SMS/MMS)”. Such crimes may threaten a nation’s security and
financial health. Issues surrounding these types of crimes have become high-profile, particularly
those surrounding cracking, copyright infringement, child pornography, and child grooming. There
are also problems of privacy when confidential information is lost or intercepted, lawfully or
otherwise.

An Australian nationwide survey conducted in 2006 found that two in three convicted cyber-
criminals were between the ages of 15 and 26.
Internationally, both governmental and non-state actors engage in cyber crimes, including
espionage, financial theft, and other cross-border crimes. Activity crossing international borders and
involving the interests of at least one nation-state is sometimes referred to as cyber warfare. The
international legal system is attempting to hold actors accountable for their actions through
the International Criminal Court.

There isn’t really a fixed definition for cybercrime. The Indian Law has not given any definition to
the term ‘cybercrime’. In fact, the Indian Penal Code does not use the term ‘cybercrime’ at any
point even after its amendment by the Information Technology (Amendment) Act 2008, the
Indian Cyberlaw. But “Cyber Security” is defined under Section (2) (b) means protecting
information, equipment, devices computer, computer resource, communication device and
information stored therein from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification or
destruction.

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Cyber Crime is not defined officially in the IT Act or in any other legislation. In fact, it cannot be
too. Offence or crime has been dealt with elaborately listing various acts and the punishments for
each, under the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and related legislation. Hence, the concept of cybercrime
is just a “combination of crime and computer”.
Cybercrime in a narrow sense (computer crime): Any illegal behaviour directed by means of
electronic operations that targets the security of computer systems and the data processed by them.

Cybercrime in a broader sense (computer-related crime):

• Any illegal behavior committed by means of, or in relation to, a computer system or
network, including such crimes as illegal possession and offering or distributing information
by means of a computer system or network.
• Any contract for the sale or conveyance of immovable property or any interest in such
property;
• Any such class of documents or transactions as may be notified by the Central Government
Confidential.

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CLASSIFICATION OF CYBER OFFENCES

The increased rate of technology in computers has led to the enactment of Information Technology
Act 2000. The converting of the paperwork into electronic records, the storage of the electronic
data, has tremendously changed the scenario of the country.

Offenses: Cyber offenses are the unlawful acts which are carried in a very sophisticated manner in
which either the computer is the tool or target or both. Cybercrime usually includes:
(a) Unauthorized access of the computers (b) Data diddling (c) Virus/worms attack (d) Theft of
computer system (e) Hacking (f) Denial of attacks (g) Logic bombs (h) Trojan attacks (i)
Internet time theft (j) Web jacking (k) Email bombing (l) Salami attacks (m) Physically
damaging computer system.
The offenses included in the IT Act 2000 are as follows[xiv]:
1. Tampering with the computer source documents.
2. Hacking with computer system.
3. Publishing of information which is obscene in electronic form.
4. Power of Controller to give directions
5. Directions of Controller to a subscriber to extend facilities to decrypt information
6. Protected system
7. Penalty for misrepresentation
8. Penalty for breach of confidentiality and privacy
9. Penalty for publishing Digital Signature Certificate false in certain particulars
10. Publication for fraudulent purpose
11. Act to apply for offense or contravention committed outside India
12. Confiscation
13. Penalties or confiscation not to interfere with other punishments.
14. Power to investigate offenses.

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Economic impact of cyber attacks
Europe suffers the highest economic impact of cyber crime, which is estimated at 0.84% of the
regional GDP, compared with 0.78% in North America, according to the latest report on the
economic impact of cyber crime by security firm McAfee and the Center for Strategic and
International Studies (CSIS).

The main drivers of this growth include the easy availability of cyber crime tools, the rapid
adoption of new technologies by cyber criminals, the expanding number of cyber crime centres, and
the growing sophistication of top-tier cyber criminals.

“There is a serious problem with under-reporting of cyber crime, with up to 95% going unreported,
so the $600bn figure is extremely conservative and is based purely on the figures we have
available,” said Raj Samani, chief scientist and fellow at McAfee. “It is bound to attract criticism,
but people need to look beyond the metrics at the real story of how the economic impact is growing,
and they will realise that it has value because, all of a sudden, we begin to get a different debate.

“The cost of doing business in the digital age is to protect your IT systems and investments, and the
economic impact of cyber crime should be one of the most important things businesses are focusing
on because failure to protect their intellectual property [IP], financial information and IT networks
does have an economic impact.”

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Most widespread types of cyber crimes that businesses suffer from
The Internet user base is increasing (4.39 billion or 57% of the total population in 2019); therefore
companies need a storage for sensitive data with greater capabilities and resources to keep it secure.
Moreover, the emerging innovative technologies pose new risks as well. The companies adopt new
technologies faster than they can address cybersecurity issues. As a result, data breach is one of the
fastest growing crimes that increases in scale, cost and sophistication posing a major threat to both
businesses and individuals even today.
How do hackers attack companies though?
Fraudulent emails (75%) remain the most widely used and successful attack on businesses and
individuals alike. Most cyber attacks start with phishing emails, exploiting human vulnerabilities,
and infecting computers with ransomware or other types of malware. Advanced malicious tools,
phishing kits and targeted attacks on specific businesses are expected in 2019.
Viruses/spyware/malware (24%) is the second most common attack that will continue bringing
sizeable damage. Viruses lead to various malicious effects including deleting or stealing
information, downloading malicious programs, providing hackers with unauthorized access to the
computer, and more. Spyware allows criminals to collect user information, credit card credentials,
user passwords, and other personal information.
Ransomware (15%) is the growing threat that allows bad actors to automate the attacks, and
thus increase their scale and profits from hacks. It blocks the user or the company from the
computer or the whole network demanding money compensations. It’s on the boom
targeting high-net-worth victims.
Unauthorized access (15%) can be performed via various malicious techniques and
instruments. It leads to information theft that many organizations are now suffering from.
Denial-of-service attacks (12%) are aimed at preventing users from server access. This type
of cybercrime can lead to noticeable disruption or complete unavailability of the server,
causing further network intrusion and loss of sensitive data.

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VARIOUS CYBER ECONOMIC OFFENCES :

SOFTWARE PIRACY

Software piracy doesn’t require a hacker or skilled coder. Any normal person with a computer can
become a software pirate if they don’t know about the software laws. With such a widespread
impact, it’s important to understand what software piracy is and the dangers it presents.When you
purchase a commercial software package, an end user license agreement ( EULA ) is included to
protect that software program from copyright infringement. Typically, the license states that you can
install the original copy of software you bought on one computer and that you can make a backup
copy in case the original is lost or damaged. You agree to the licensing agreement when you open
the software package (this is called a shrink wrap license), when you open the envelope that
contains the software disks, or when you install the software.Software piracy applies mainly to full-
function commercial software. The time-limited or function-restricted versions of commercial
software called shareware are less likely to be pirated since they are freely available.
Similarly, freeware , a type of software that is copyrighted but freely distributed at no charge, also
offers little incentive for piracy.

credit card fraud

A thief digs through your trash, finds discarded receipts or credit card statements that include your
account number, and uses that information to rack up fraudulent charges.An unscrupulous waiter
steals your card number and uses it to finance, say, a Caribbean vacation.An identity thief lures you
to a fraudulent website where you are tricked into providing your card number. The thief then uses
your credit card information for fraudulent purchases.You swipe your card at your local ATM or at
the gas pump. Later, you notice fraudulent purchases on your statement. What happened? Someone
might have installed a credit card skimmer to steal your account information. A credit card skimmer
is a small device that thieves can install anywhere you swipe your card. Skimming has proved to be
an effective way for thieves to steal credit card information.Sometimes your credit card information
is stolen through no fault of your own. Your credit card number might be exposed in a data breach
that hits one of your favorite retailers. Thieves can then use this information to rack up online
charges with your credit card account numbers.Thieves often buy stolen credit card numbers on the
dark web, that part of the web that’s only accessed through special software. Credit card numbers
are valuable to thieves, and they aren’t shy about visiting illegal dark web markets to get them.

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Phishing

Phishing is a cyber attack that uses disguised email as a weapon. The goal is to trick the email
recipient into believing that the message is something they want or need a request from their bank,
for instance, or a note from someone in their company and to click a link or download an
attachment.
What really distinguishes phishing is the form the message takes: the attackers masquerade as a
trusted entity of some kind, often a real or plausibly real person, or a company the victim might do
business with. It's one of the oldest types of cyberattacks, dating back to the 1990s, and it's still one
of the most widespread and pernicious, with phishing messages and techniques becoming
increasingly sophisticated.
Phish" is pronounced just like it's spelled, which is to say like the word "fish" — the analogy is of
an angler throwing a baited hook out there (the phishing email) and hoping you bite. The term arose
in the mid-1990s among hackers aiming to trick AOL users into giving up their login information.
The "ph" is part of a tradition of whimsical hacker spelling, and was probably influenced by the
term "phreaking," short for "phone phreaking," an early form of hacking that involved playing
sound tones into telephone handsets to get free phone calls.

Hacking
is an attempt to exploit a computer system or a private network inside a computer. Simply put, it is
the unauthorised access to or control over computer network security systems for some illicit
purpose.To better describe hacking, one needs to first understand hackers. One can easily assume
them to be intelligent and highly skilled in computers. In fact, breaking a security system requires
more intelligence and expertise than actually creating one. There are no hard and fast rules whereby
we can categorize hackers into neat compartments. However, in general computer parlance, we call
them white hats, black hats and grey hats. White hat professionals hack to check their own security
systems to make it more hack-proof. In most cases, they are part of the same organisation. Black hat
hackers hack to take control over the system for personal gains. They can destroy, steal or even
prevent authorized users from accessing the system. They do this by finding loopholes and
weaknesses in the system. Some computer experts call them crackers instead of hackers. Grey hat
hackers comprise curious people who have just about enough computer language skills to enable
them to hack a system to locate potential loopholes in the network security system. Grey hats differ

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from black hats in the sense that the former notify the admin of the network system about the
weaknesses discovered in the system, whereas the latter is only looking for personal gains. All kinds
of hacking are considered illegal barring the work done by white hat hackers.

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Criticism

the IT Act, 2000 was undoubtedly a welcome step at a time when there was no legislation on this
specialized field. The Act has however during its applications has proved to be inadequate to a
certain extent. The various loopholes or criticism of the Act are as follows-

The hurry with which the legislation was passed without sufficient public debate, did not really
serve the desired purpose. Experts are of the opinion that one of the reasons for the inadequacy of
the legislation has been the hurry in which it was passed by the parliament and it is also a fact that
sufficient time was not given for a pubic debate.

The IT Act, 2000 in their very preamble and aim state that they are targeted at aiding e-commerce
and are not meant to regulate cyber crime”, which is also one of the inadequacy to deal with cases
of cyber crime.

Cyber torts: the recent cases including the cyber stalking, cyber harassment, cyber nuisance have
shown that the IT Act, 2000 has not dealt with those offences. Further it is also contended that in
future new forms of cyber crime will emerge which need to be taken care of.

Cyber crime in the Act is neither comprehensive nor exhaustive: There is need of dedicated
legislation on cyber crime that can supplement the IPC. The IT Act, 2000 is not comprehensive &
doesn’t even define the term cyber offences. “India as nation has to cope with an urgent need to
regulate an punish those committing cyber crimes, but with no specific provisions to do so.
Supporters of the IPC School vehemently argue that IPC has stood the test of time and that it is not
necessarily to incorporate any special laws on cyber crimes. This is because it is debated by them
that the IPC alone is sufficient for all kinds of crime. However, in practical terms the argument does
not have appropriate backing. It has to be distinctively understood that cyber crime and cyber space
are completely new whelms, where new possibilities and opportunities emerge by the day in the
form of new kinds of crimes.

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Ambiguity in the definition: The definition of hacking provided in section 66 of the Act is very
wide and capable of misapplication. There is every possibility of this section being misapplied and
in fact the Delhi court has misapplied in number cases.


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CONCLUSION

Due to the increase in digital technology, various offences are increasing day by day. Therefore, the
IT Act 2000 need to be amended in order to include those offences which are now not included in
the Act. In India, cybercrime is not of high rate. Therefore, we have time in order to tighten the
cyber laws and include the offences which are now not included in the IT Act 2000.
Since the beginning of civilisation, man has always been motivated by the need to make progress
and better the existing technologies. This has led to tremendous development and progress which
has been a launching pad for further developments. Of all the significant advances made by
mankind from the beginning to date, probably the most important of them is the development of the
Internet.
However, the rapid evolution of the Internet has also raised numerous legal issues and questions. As
the scenario continues to be still not clear, countries throughout the world are resorting to different
approaches towards controlling, regulating and facilitating electronic communication and
commerce.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

WEBSITES:
LEGALSERVICESINIA.COM
LAWCTOPUS.COM
TECHNOLOGY.ORG

BARE ACTS;
INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY ACT 2000

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