Cyber Crime: Judicial Perspective

By
Talwant Singh
Addl. Distt. & Sessions Judge Delhi

talwantsingh@gmail.com

RELEVANCE OF EVIDENCE

Main purpose of investigation of any crime is to collect sufficient & legally admissible evidence to ensure conviction of offenders. Requirements of evidence in Cyber Crimes are not different but its nature has made collection of Evidence a specialised job. Evidence Act & rules already in existence were considered not sufficient; so IT Act, 2000 made extensive changes in Indian Evidence Act, 1872

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

3. Evidence - "Evidence" means and includes:

All documents including electronic records produced in Court are called documentary evidence. Electronic records has the same meaning as assigned in IT Act,2000, i.e.:

image or sound stored, received or sent in an electronic form; or micro film or computer generated micro fiche;

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

17. Admission defined - An admission is a statement, oral or documentary or contained in electronic form which suggests any inference as to any fact in issue or relevant fact.

27. How much of information received from accused may be proved - When any fact is discovered in consequence of information received from a person accused of any offence, in the custody of a police officer, so much of such information, as relates distinctly to the fact thereby discovered, may be proved.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

When oral admission as to contents of electronic records are relevant:

22A. Oral admissions as to the contents of electronic records are not relevant, unless the genuineness of the electronic record produced is in question. 59. Proof of facts by oral evidence - All facts, except the contents of documents or electronic records, may be proved by oral evidence.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

39. How much evidence to be given when statement forms part of electronic record: When any statement of which evidence is given forms part of an electronic record, then
Evidence shall be given of so much and no more of the electronic record, as the Court considers necessary in that particular case to the full understanding of the nature and effect of the statement, and of the circumstances under which it was made.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Opinion as to digital signature where relevant. 47A. When the Court has to form an opinion as to the digital signature of any person, the opinion of the Certifying Authority which has issued the Digital Signature Certificate is a relevant fact. Proof as to digital signature. 67A. Except in the case of a secure digital signature, if the digital signature of any subscriber is alleged to have been affixed to an electronic record, the fact that such digital signature is the digital signature of the subscriber must be proved.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Proof as to verification of digital signature. 73A. In order to ascertain whether a digital signature is that of the person by whom it purports to have been affixed, the Court may direct(a) that person or the Controller or the Certifying Authority to produce the Digital Signature Certificate;

(b) any other person to apply the public key listed in the Digital Signature Certificate and verify the digital signature purported to have been affixed by that person.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Admissibility of electronic records.

65B. (1) Any information contained in an electronic record which is printed on a paper, stored, recorded or copied in optical or magnetic media produced by a computer shall be deemed to be also a document, if certain conditions are satisfied. It shall be admissible in any proceedings, without further proof or production of the original, as evidence of any contents of the original or of any fact stated therein of which direct evidence would be admissible.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

65 B (2) The conditions are as following: (a) the computer output was produced during the period when it was used regularly to store or process information for the purposes of any activities regularly carried on by a person having lawful control over the computer; (b) during the said period, information of the kind contained in the electronic record or of the kind from which the information so contained is derived was regularly fed into the computer in the ordinary course of the said activities;

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

65 B (2) (c) throughout the said period, computer was operating properly or, if not, then that part of the period was not such as to affect the electronic record or the accuracy of its contents; and

(d) the information contained in the electronic record reproduced or is derived from such information fed into the computer in the ordinary course of the said activities.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Presumption as to electronic agreements. 85A The Court shall presume that every electronic record purporting to be an agreement containing the digital signatures of the parties was so concluded by affixing the digital signature of the parties.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Presumption as to electronic records and digital signatures:

85B. (1) the Court shall presume that the secure electronic record has not been altered since the specific point of time to which the secure status relates. (2) In proceedings involving secure digital signature, the Court shall presume that the secure digital signature is affixed by subscriber with the intention of signing or approving the electronic record.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Presumption as to electronic messages:

88A. The Court may presume that an electronic message forwarded by the originator through an electronic mail server to the addressee to whom the message purports to be addressed corresponds with the message as fed into his computer for transmission; but the Court shall not make any presumption as to the person by whom such message was sent.

INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT (Amended)

Presumption as to electronic records five years old.

90A. Where any electronic record, purporting or proved to be five years old, is produced from any custody which the Court in the particular case considers proper, the Court may presume that the digital signature which purports to be the digital signature of any particular person was so affixed by him or any person authorised by him in this behalf.

Recent Amendments

The Information Technology (Amendment) Bill, 2008 (Bill No.96-F of 2008) was passed by the Lok Sabha on 22-12-2008 and by the Rajya Sabha on 23-12-2008. It received His Excellency Presidents assent on 5th February, 2009. The date, from which the amendments are to be applicable, is yet to be notified.

Important Amendments to IT Act

In Section 43, two new offences added:

1. Destroying, deleting or altering information in a computer resource to diminish its value. 2. Stealing, concealing or destroying any computer source code with intention to cause damage.

Important Amendments to IT Act

Sec. 66 has been replaced providing that if any of the acts mentioned in Section 43 was done dishonestly or fraudulently, it is punishable with 3 Years Imprisonment or Fine of Rs.5.00 Lacs or with both. A new Sec.66A is added providing for three years imprisonment and fine for sending:

1. Offensive or menacing information; or 2. False information for causing insult, injury, intimidation, hatred or ill-will; or 3. E-mail causing annoyance or to deceive or misled recipient about the origin of that e-mail

Important Amendments to IT Act

Section 66B makes it an offence to dishonestly receive or retain any stolen computer resource or communication device which is punishable with 3 years imprisonment or fine upto Rs. 1.00 Lac. Dishonest use of Electronic Signatures, password or identification feature invites punishment upto 3 years and fine upto Rs. 1.00 Lac (Section 66C)

Important Amendments to IT Act

Impersonation with the help of computer or communication device will result in 3 years imprisonment and fine upto Rs.1.00 Lac (Section 66D) Violation of privacy by way of sending electronic visual images of private parts of body is also punishable with 3 years imprisonment or fine upto Rs. 1.00 Lac. (Section 66E)

Important Amendments to IT Act

Cyber Terrorism is defined in Section 66F: Whoever threatens the unity, integrity, security or sovereignty of India or strike terror in people by: 1. Denying access to computer resource; or 2. access computer resource without authority; or 3. Introduce any computer contaminant and causes death or destruction of property; or Penetrates restricted computer resources or information affecting sovereignty, integrity, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency, contempt of court, defamation or to the advantage of foreign state or group of persons. It is punishable with imprisonment upto life.

Important Amendments to IT Act

Obscenity has been defined in new Section 67 punishable with imprisonment for 3 years with fine upto Rs. 5.00 Lacs for first offence and imprisonment for 5 years with fine upto Rs. 10.00 Lacs for subsequent offence. Section 67A deals with publishing or transmitting sexually explicit material which is punishable with 5 years imprisonment & fine upto 10.00 Lacs for first offence and for subsequent offence, imprisonment upto 7 years with fine upto 10.00 Lacs.

Important Amendments to IT Act

Child Pornography has been made a separate offence in Section 67B punishable with 5 years imprisonment & fine upto 10.00 Lacs for first offence and for subsequent offence, imprisonment upto 7 years with fine upto 10.00 Lacs.

Section 69 has been redrafted enabling Government agencies to intercept, monitor or decrypt any electronic information with the help of subscribers, intermediary or person incharge of computer resources.
Non-cooperation by any of the above invites imprisonment upto 7 years with fine.

Important Amendments to IT Act

69A: Government gets power to issue directions for blocking for public access of any information through any computer resource. An intermediary who fails to comply with directions in this regard shall be punished with imprisonment upto 7 years with fine. 69B: For cyber security, Government may order any intermediary to allow access to any computer resources and violation results in imprisonment upto 3 years with fine.

Important Amendments to IT Act

Sec.72A provides for punishment for disclosure of information in breach of lawful contract extending upto 3 years or fine to the tune of Rs. 5.00 Lacs or with both. Section 77:confiscation, compensation awarded or penalty imposed does not come in the way of penalty, punishment or compensation under any other Act. Compounding of offences with punishment upto 3 years allowed subject to the conditions that accused has no previous conviction or the offence does not affect the socio-economic conditions or it was not committed against a child or a woman.

Important Amendments to IT Act

Sec. 77B prescribes that notwithstanding CrPC:

Offence punishable with imprisonment of 3 years and above are cognizable. Offence punishable with imprisonment upto 3 years are bailable. Power to investigate Cyber Crimes has been now vested in Inspectors in place of Dy.S.P. Office of Government Examiner of Electronic Evidence is to be established. (Section 79A) Abatement carries same punishment as main act. Attempt to commit offence carries half of the punishment. (Section 84B & 84C)

Important Amendments to IPC

Jurisdiction is not bounded by Countrys boundaries if the target is a computer resource located in India. Section 4(3) Any act done anywhere in the world is an offence if the said act, if committed in India is an offence. Explanation (a) to Section 4 Voluntary concealment of existence of a design by encryption or any other information hiding tool is an offence. The words Digital Signatures have been replaced with Electronic signatures.

Important Amendments to CrPC

Opinion of Examiner of Electronic Evidence has been made relevant. (Section 45A) Examiner is to be treated as an Expert. Examiner is to examined like any other expert from CFSL or other Labs. Words Digital Signature are to be replaced by Electronic Signature.

THANKS
TALWANT SINGH
ADDL. DISTT. & SESSIONS JUDGE

talwantsingh@gmail.com