Cyber Crime Against Women.

Cybercrime can be defined as unlawful activities conducted through the internet and digital devices intending to creep into the private space of others and disturb them with objectionable content and misbehaviour. Cyber-crime affects women the most by subjecting them to mental and emotional harassment.

Cyber Violence Against Women:

Cyber violence uses Computer Technology to access women’s personal information and use the internet for harassment and exploitation. Women are becoming soft targets as they often trust other people and are unaware of the consequences. Cyber crime has increased because it is difficult to detect and prove and is seldom reported. Cyber crime is away from traditional monitoring, investigation, or audit and requires specialists to understand the nature of the crime. Cyber crime affects women the most by subjecting them to mental and emotional harassment. Most women become distressed, humiliated, and depressed under this type of crime which is challenging to address and resolve.

Types of Cyber Crime:

Cyber crime against women includes gender-based and sexual remarks and activities performed through a computer network or mobile phones, affecting the dignity of women and causing emotional distress. The different types of cyber crime against women are explained as follows:

Cyber Stalking: It includes attempting to contact the women via social networking sites without any legitimate purpose, putting threatening messages on the chat page, and constantly disturbing the victims with objectionable emails and messages to create mental distress.
Cyber Defamation: This activity involves defaming the victim through blackmailing and disclosing their details or modified pictures. It often involves extorting and seeking sexual favors from the victim.
Cyber Hacking: When asked to click on unauthorised URLs or download apps that leak all their personal information on their phones, the women became victims of cyber hacking. The criminals utilise these details for unauthorised monetary transactions and other unlawful activities.
Cyber Bullying: It is an act of regular harassment and bullying of the victim through the digital communication device by posting abusive and misleading content, pictures, or videos and sending rape and death threats.
Pornography: This criminal activity involves posting morphed images of victims and using them for pornographic purposes, sometimes demanding money to remove them from social networking sites.
Cyber Grooming: In this case, a person builds a relationship with a woman through an online platform and pressurizes her for undue favors or doing sexual acts.

How to Tackle Cyber Crime?

The most important part is to have a thorough knowledge and awareness about privacy and cyber crimes to avoid people being vulnerable to such threats. There must be more education on cyber crimes and online fraud and how to get rid of or handle them. Cyber literacy should start from the basic level with adequate knowledge about good operating practices. It is necessary to remain extra vigilant about cyber privacy and security. Proper awareness and education can help teach good habits and techniques while working online with digital devices. There has been an increasing trend in cyber crime against women involving blackmailing, fake profiles, morphed images, and publishing or transmitting sexually explicit messages online.

Measures that can be taken for Online Safety:

Keep a watch on irrelevant or fraudulent messages or emails.
Avoid responding to emails asking for personal information.
Avoid accessing fraudulent websites or apps that require personal information.
Take care of the email address and password.
Use strong and secure passwords and keep on changing regularly.
Don’t click on unrecognized UPL or download unknown apps.
Remain updated about cyber laws and policies.

Legal Provisions Related to Cyber Crime Against Women:

All users of cyberspace are subject to specific laws applicable worldwide. Cyber laws deal with legal issues arising from networked computer technology and digital platforms. These laws protect the victims against cyber crimes and help them address the issues and get justice. The following acts under the Indian Penal Code (IPC, 1860) section 354 mention the following crimes as punishable under the law with rigorous imprisonment and fines.

Section 354A: Demand for sexual favors or displaying objectionable pictures against a woman’s consent or making sexual remarks and sexual harassment will cause the imprisonment of up to 3 years with fines.
Section 354C: An act of photographing or publishing a picture of a woman engaged in a private act without her consent will lead to imprisonment of 3 to 7 years.
Section 354D: Contacting a woman online and sending irrelevant emails/messages despite the woman’s evident disinterest will cause the imprisonment of 5 years with fines.

The Information Technology Act, 2000 also has provisions for punishment under the following sections:

Section 66C-Identify cyber hacking is a punishable offense with imprisonment of 3 years and fines of Rs. 1 lakh.
Section 66E- Deals with the offense of capturing, publishing, or sending pictures of women in circumstances that violate privacy. This causes imprisonment of 3 years.
Section 67A- Makes it illegal to publish and transmit sexually explicit content and is punishable with imprisonment of up to 5 to 7 years.

The Cyber crime Prevention Act of 2012 focuses on preventing and prosecuting offenders involved in cyber crimes like violating privacy, confidentiality, and integrity of information through computer-related criminal activities.
The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act regulates and prohibits the indecent representation of women through the media and publications, which also includes the audio-visual media, the content in electronic form, and distribution of material on the Internet, and the portrayal of women over the web.

Procedure For Resolution:

If a woman finds evidence of cyber crimes, she must contact the nearest cyber cell or a police station. A complaint may also be filed through the National cyber crime reporting portal. To file a complaint alleging a cyber-crime, few documents are required, such as a soft copy or hard copy of a web page or emails with abusive contents, sender details, and access mechanism to the networking system. You can also provide a list of suspects as you find suitable.

Government Initiatives To Enhance Cyber-Security In India:

The Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC) scheme is introduced to develop effective measures to handle cyber crimes against women and children in India. It allows a cyber crime victim to file a complaint through an online cyber crime reporting platform. The platform also provides details of law enforcement and regulatory agencies at the local and national levels. The CCPWC also conducts awareness programs starting from the school level as a proactive measure to mitigate cyber crimes.

Way Forward to Prevent Cyber Crime:

The most important part is to have a thorough knowledge and awareness about privacy and cyber crimes to avoid people being vulnerable to such threats. There has to be more education on cyber crimes and online fraud and how to get rid of them or handle them. Cyber literacy should start from the basic level with adequate knowledge about good operating practices. It is necessary to remain extra vigilant about cyber privacy and security. Proper awareness and education can help inculcate good habits and practices while working online with digital devices. There is also a need for stricter law enforcement and punishment for offenders. Media interventions for creating public awareness can make an effective contribution in bringing about changes in the attitudes of people towards gender norms.

Important Data About Cyber Crimes Against Women:

A total of 10,405 cyber-crimes against women were reported in 2020, with an increase of 24%.
The Information Technology Act of 2000 is the primary law in India dealing with cyber crime.

Conclusion:

In an increasingly technology-dependent world, criminal activities related to electronic and internet platforms tend to increase, with women becoming the soft targets. The legislation must go the extra mile to punish such criminals with strict actions. Technology has its pros and cons that can be applied for either constructive or evil purposes. To combat cyber crime against women, greater awareness and knowledge about cyber practices, privacy protection, and legal support are required.