CYBER CRIME IN INDIA

COMPILED BY: NEHA TAK & NEETIKA NEGI, BATCH 7,

NDTVMI

According to a report of the World Economic Forum,
by 2015, about one trillion devices will be connected to
the internet. Considering the rapidly increasing usage
of internet an increase in computer crimes is obvious.
McConnell International, a global technology policy and
management consulting firm, surveyed its global
network of IT policy officials to determine the state
of cyber security laws around the world. According to
the reports, thirty three of the countries surveyed
have not yet updated their laws to address any type of
cyber crime. Only ten countries have updated their
laws to prosecute against six or more of the ten types
of cyber crime. India is one of them.
The American Express Global Customer Service
Barometer, 2012, reveals there are over 100 million
internet users in India, of which 87% log on to social
networking websites at least once a week. India is
driving the social networking market, but is also
becoming vulnerable to more and more cyber crimes.
Shivshankar Menon, the National Security Adviser of
India, in his recent speech on Indias cyber security,
mentioned that we are in the final stages of preparing
a whole-of-government cyber security architecture.

1. What exactly is cyber crime?
Any crime that involves a Computer or a network
is called cyber crime. The computer may have
been used to commit a crime or it may be the
target. Criminal exploitation that involves the
internet is also known as netcrime. There are
several types of cyber crimes. Here are some:
a) Hacking accessing a computer or a personal
account without the owners consent. It can be
used to gain information, destroy information,
defamation, harassment, threat or blackmailing.
b) Cracking- disabling certain features without the
owners consent.
c) Spam- unsolicited sending of bulk email
d) Virus- it is a program that can replicate itself. It
spreads from one computer to another and
damages data.
e) Cyber terrorism- these days terrorists use the
internet for acquiring information about their
targets.
f) Phishing- attempting to acquire information such
as usernames, passwords and credit card details
and sometimes money by masquerading as a
trustworthy entity
g) Vishing- is the criminal practice of using
features like Voice over IP on the telephone to
gain access to private information.
h) Espionage- spying to obtain secret information.

2. Who can be typically expected to indulge in
cyber crime?
It is difficult to specify who indulges in cyber
crime. Considering its a white collar crime its
usually literate people who indulge in it. However
there is no hard and fast rule that an illiterate
cannot. The criminals can be any of the following:
a) Insiders-disgruntled employees, ex
employees spouses, lovers etc
b) Bank/Call centre employees- these people
usually have access to credit card and
account numbers.
c) Hackers- could be insiders or strangers
and can have any malicious intent. Some
like to trouble just for thrills
d) Virus developers- they pose a serious
threat to systems and networks worldwide
e) Foreign Intelligence-can use it for
espionage activities. Can pose the biggest
threat to security of another country
f) Terrorists- they use it formulate plans,
propogate and raise funds.

3. What is the history of cyber crime India? (Note
that this is not the first cyber crime reported in
India, it is the first convicted)
The history of cyber crime in India cannot be
specifically traced considering that not many
cyber crimes were reported or registered
earlier. However, India saw its first cyber crime
conviction about a decade back. Sony India Pvt.
Ltd. lodged a complaint against Noida resident
Arif Azim for online cheating. Arif had gained
access to the credit card number of an American
national. Arif worked in a call centre. The CBI
recovered the television set and chord less head
phone from him that he had purchased illegally.
The court convicted Arif under Section 418,419
and 420 of the Indian Penal Code-this being the
first that a cyber crime has been convicted in
India.

4. What other major cyber crimes have been
committed in India in the past?
Here are a few major cases which can be looked
at:
a) Pune Citibank Mphasis Call Centre Fraud- in
this case some call centre employees gained
the confidence of customers, obtained their
pins and transferred money from their
accounts to bogus accounts.
b) Bazee.com- the CEO of Bazee.com was
arrested in December 2004 because a CD
with objectionable material was being sold
on the website.
c) Suhas Katti case- it was a case of personal
grudge leading to online defamation and
harassment of a divorced woman in Chennai
d) The Bank NSP case- in this case a mans
former girlfriend, out of personal grudge,
sent emails to the mans foreign clients from
fraudulent IDs using the banks computers.
The mans company lost a large number of
clients and took the bank to the court.
e) SMC Pnuematics (India) Pvt. Lt- Indias first
case of cyber defamation an employee
Jogesh Kwatra started sending derogatory,
defamatory, vulgar and filthy mails to his
employers to defame the company Managing
Director R.K. Malhotra
f) Parliament attack case-the entire plant of
the 2001 attack was formulated using a
laptop.
g) Andhra Pradesh Tax case-the accused was
running five businesses under the guise of
one company and used fake and
computerized vouchers to show sales
records and save tax.

5. What is the current scenario of cyber crime in
India?
According to FBI National White Collar Crime
Centres report last year, India ranks 5
th
in the
most cyber crime affected nations.
While releasing the Institute of Defense
Studies and Analyses (IDSA) report, Shiv
Shankar Menon said, during 2010 Commonwealth
Games in Delhi, more than 8,000 attacks were
mounted on cyber structures associated with it.
These attacks were on its timing, scoring, result
system and ticketing network.
Menon says the country needs to harden its
critical networks and develop metrics to certify
cyber networks, equipment and infrastructure
are secure.
In the last three years about 9000 Indian
websites have been damaged or destroyed by
hackers. Last year Chinese hackers attacked the
PMs office computers. In March 2008 Chinese
hackers had tried to Indian Foreign Ministrys
website. However, it is not just the government
that is facing this problem.
With the increasing number of internet users
more and more cases of cyber crime are coming
up. It has become very easy to invade someones
privacy especially with the advent of social
networking sites like Facebook.
India has an estimated 14 crore users of
Facebook. Out of these, about one crore
accounts are suspected to be fake. People often
use such accounts for pestering, cyber stalking
and other things.
Construction of not just fake accounts but also
fake websites has become a major problem.
For example recently popular show Satyameva
Jayates fake website was in the news for
confusing and misleading viewers thus troubling
the show producers and the team.

6. How has cyber crime played a role in helping
terrorists in the past few years, targeting
several countries, especially India?
Fact is that computer knowledge has become
important for everybody and terrorists are not
an exception. They are given computer knowledge
even before military knowledge. Normally even
an illiterate terrorist would have basic computer
knowledge because they know that the cyber
space is of great help in the formulation and
execution of their plans.
Often we see that a lot of former IT
professionals and engineers become terrorists.
For example, the 26/11 Mumbai attack was
planned out using internet applications like
Google Earth the police said.
Various terrorist groups also use the internet
for communicating with each other, expressing
violent sentiments and propagating their cause.

7. What are the cyber crimes covered under Indian
Penal Code?
Sending threatening messages by email -Sec
503 IPC
Sending defamatory messages by email -Sec
499 IPC
Forgery of electronic records Sec - 463 IPC
Bogus websites, cyber frauds Sec - 420 IPC
Email spoofing - Sec 463 IPC
Web-Jacking -Sec. 383 IPC
E-Mail Abuse -Sec -500 IPC
Online sale of Drugs - NDPS Act
Online sale of Arms -Arms Act

8. What is the IT Act of 2000? How does it deal
with cyber crime in India?
The Information Technology Act 2000 is an act
of the Indian Parliament notified on Oct 17.One
of the important issues it deals with is justice
dispensation systems for cyber crimes. For
example Chapter 11 of the Act talks about
various cyber offences and the said offences
shall be investigated only by a Police officer not
below the rank of the Deputy Superintendent of
police. These offences include tampering with
computer source documents, publishing of
information which is obscene in electronic form
and hacking.
Cyber crimes are generally punishable by fines
under the Act, although perpetrators are also
subject to imprisonment under the IPC. Usually
most cyber crimes are covered under the IPC
because it easier to prosecute for crimes like
fraud, theft and destruction of property.(which
can be cyber crimes as well). Indian courts have
the right to levy fines of around 25,000 rupees
in connection with cyber crimes.

9. What are the complications of the legal
structure dealing with cyber crime in India?

There are many complications involved in the
legal handling of cyber crime in our country. The
offences are not much specified and usually
people choose to overlook the matter than going
to the court, considering the lethargic attitude
of the police in these matters.
However the system works differently for
important people and politicians. If the
government wants it can easily object to
objectionable content on internet and the
matter is directly taken up by the ministry. For
example website
www.cartoonagainstcorruption.com, was
straightaway banned during the peak of ANNA
HAZARES movement.
This is the reason why various cyber experts are
criticizing the IT regulations and the
government for trying to gag the internet in the
name of cyber policing. India does not require a
government playing cyber cop like in China, but a
solid legal structure to fight cyber crime.

10. Where all are the cyber crime cells of India?

Cyber Crime Cells in India
Last Updated on: May 07, 2012 11:53 AM
Assam
CID HQ,Dy.SP.
Assam Police
contact Details
Ph: +91-361-252-618
+91-9435045242
E-mail: ssp_cod@assampolice.com
Chennai
Address:
Assistant Commissioner of Police
Cyber Crime Cell
Commissioner office Campus
Egmore, Chennai- 600008
Contact Details: +91-40-5549 8211
E-mail id: s.balu@nic.in
For Rest of Tamil Nadu,
Address: Cyber Crime Cell, CB, CID, Chennai
ph: +91 44 2250 2512
E-mail id: cbcyber@tn.nic.in
Bangalore
(for whole of the Karnataka)
Address:
Cyber Crime Police Station
C.O.D Headquarters,
Carlton House,
# 1, Palace Road,
Bangalore - 560 001
Contact Details:
+91-80-2220 1026
+91-80-2294 3050
+91-80-2238 7611 (FAX)
Web site:
http://www.cyberpolicebangalore.nic.in/
Email-id: ccps@blr.vsnl.net.in,
ccps@kar.nic.in
Hyderabad
Address:
Cyber Crime Police Station
Crime Investigation Department,
3rd Floor, D.G.P. office
Lakdikapool,
Hyderabad 500004
Contact Details:
+91-40-2324 0663
+91-40-2785 2274
+91-40-2785 2040
+91-40-2329 7474 (Fax)
Web
site:http://www.cidap.gov.in/cybercrimes.aspx
E-mail id: cidap@cidap.gov.in,
info@cidap.gov.in
cybercell_hyd@hyd.appolice.gov.in
Delhi
CBI Cyber Crime Cell:
Thane
Address:
Superintendent of Police,
Cyber Crime Investigation Cell
Central Bureau of Investigation,
5th Floor, Block No.3,
CGO Complex,
Lodhi Road,
New Delhi 3

Contact Details:
+91-11-4362203
+91-11-4392424
Web site: http://cbi.nic.in/
E-Mail: cbiccic@bol.net.in
3rd Floor, Police Commissioner Office
Near Court Naka,
Thane West,
Thane 400601.
Contact Details: +91-22-25424444
Web site: www.thanepolice.org
E-Mail: police@thanepolice.org

Pune
Deputy Commissioner of Police(Crime)
Office of the Commissioner Office,
2, Sadhu Vaswani Road,
Camp,Pune 411001
Contact Details:
+91-20-26123346
+91-20-26127277
+91-20-2616 5396
+91-20-2612 8105 (Fax)
Website:
www.punepolice.gov.in
E-Mail: crimecomp.pune@nic.in
punepolice@vsnl.com
Gujarat
DIG, CID, Crime and Railways
Fifth Floor
Police Bhavan
Sector 18, Gandhinagar 382 018

Contact Details:
+91-79-2325 4384
+91-79-2325 0798
+91-79-2325 3917 (Fax)
Jharkhand
IG-CID,Organized Crime
Rajarani Building,Doranda Ranchi,
834002
Ph: +91-651-2400 737/ 738
E-mail: a.gupta@jharkhandpolice.gov.in

Mumbai
Address:
Cyber Crime Investigation Cell
Office of Commissioner of
Police office,Annex -3 Building,
1st floor, Near Crawford Market,
Mumbai-01.
Contact Details:
+91-22-22630829
+91-22-22641261
Web site: http://www.cybercellmumbai.com
E-mail id: officer@cybercellmumbai.com
Haryana
Cyber Crime and Technical Investigation
Cell,
Joint Commisioner of Police
Old S.P.Office complex,Civil Lines
Gurgaon
E-mail: jtcp.ggn@hry.nic.in
Himachal Pradesh
CID Office ,
Dy.SP
Himachal Pradesh
Contact Details
Ph: +91-94180 39449
E-mail:soodbrijesh9@gmail.com
Jammu
SSP,Crime
CPO Complex,Panjtirthi
Jammu-180004
Contact Details
Ph: +91-191-257-8901
E-mail: sspcrmjmu-jk@nic.in
Kerala
Hitech Cell
Police Head Quarters
Thiruvananthapuram
Contact Details
Ph: +91-471 272 1547
+91-471 272 2768
E-mail: hitechcell@keralapolice.gov.in
Meghalaya
SCRB,Superintendent of Police
Meghalaya
Ph: +91 98630 64997
E-mail: scrb-meg@nic.in
Orissa
CID,Crime Branch
Orissa
Ph: +91 94374 50370
E-mail: splcidcb.orpol@nic.in
Bihar
Cyber Crime Investigation Unit
Dy.S.P.Kotwali Police Station, Patna
Punjab
Cyber Crime Police Station
DSP Cyber Crime,
Ph: +91 94318 18398
E-mail: cciu-bih@nic.in
S.A.S Nagar,Patiala,
Punjab
Ph: +91 172 2748 100
Uttar Pradesh
Cyber Complaints Redressal Cell,
Nodal Officer Cyber cell Agra,
Agra Range 7,Kutchery Road,
Baluganj,Agra-232001
Uttar Pradesh
Ph:919410837559
e-mail: info@cybercellagra.com
West Bengal
CID, Cyber Crime
West Bengal
Ph: +9133 24506163
e-mail:occyber@cidwestbengal.gov.in
UttaraKhand
Special Task Force Office
Sub Inspector of Police, Dehradoon
Ph: +91 135 2640982
+91 94123 70272
e-mail:dgc-police-us@nic.in