Cyber Crime: Definition, Categories, Legal Consequences

Cyber crime is one of the newest forms of crime which can not be deterred completely. With the help of technology, the way of committing crime is increasing day by day. There are many upcoming technologies in the market giving rise to new ways of committing cyber crimes. It is not only about committing crime but also simplification of escaping from such committed crime. Escaping from committed crime is so far easier than committing crime. The criminals who commit cyber crime easily trap people by getting their personal information due to their lack of knowledge or unawareness to access the internet. With the ever growing world, the rate of cyber crime has been increasing and continuing.

Definition of Cyber Crime

Cyber crime is only an updated and severe version of traditional crime. Both include the conduct whether act or omission which causes breach of rules of law and counterbalance by the state. It is difficult to define cyber crime because there are different forms of misuse of information- technology. If the ways of misusing information technology is if substantiated, then new ways can be drawn by the experts. In the narrow sense cyber crime is an illegal behaviour coordinated by means of electronic operations that targets the security of computer systems and data processed by them. And in the wider sense we can say it is any illegal behaviour committed by means of, or in relation to, a computer system or network.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recommended the working definition of cyber crime “computer related crime is considered as any illegal, unethical or unauthorized behaviour relating to the automatic processing and the transmission of data.”

There are three categories of cyber crime:

1. Crime against person. This category involves an individual distributing malicious or illegal information online. Cyber harassment and stalking, spoofing, identity theft, distribution of child pornography, credit card fraud, human trafficking, and online libel or slander.
2. Crime against property. The hacker steals a person’s bank details to gain access to funds, makes purchases online or runs phishing scams to get the people to give away their information. Some online crimes occur against property, such as a computer or server. These crimes include DDOS attacks, hacking, virus transmission, computer vandalism, and IPR violations.
3. Crime against government. At the point when a cybercrime is perpetrated against the administration, it is viewed as an assault on that country’s power and furthermore known as digital fear mongering.

Reasons for Cyber Crime

Crime has always been a social taboo and there are various factors responsible for it. In the absence of any fool proof mechanism to protect and safeguard innocent computer users against cyber criminality, the cyber criminals indulge in criminal activities through networks unabated without any fear of being apprehend and tried for the offence committed by them. Specific reasons behind the cyber crime cannot be given. A few probable reasons for committing cyber crime are as follows

• Capacity to store data in comparatively small space. Lakhs of pages can be stored in a small micro- processor computer chip. This storage capacity has enough space to remove or derive information either through physical or visual medium in a much easier way. Any data stored in ROM will remain ineffective even if the power is turned off, whatever be the type of ROM used. The data stored therein is non-volatile and will remain so indefinitely unless it is intentionally erased or overwritten.
• Wider access to information. Information dissemination through the World Wide Web has created new resources for faster and cost effective, easy access to information throughout the world. New atmospheres have been facilitated by it regarding downloads, chats, emails, etc.However, wider access to information creates some problems like protecting and guarding any computer system against unauthorized use. The complex manipulations in the technology have aided the access to penetrate and not due to human error .
• Negligence of network users. Negligence is firmly identified with human conduct, It is in this way very likely that while protecting the computer system there might be any lapse or negligence on the part of the owner, this user may provide an opportunity for the cyber criminal to gain unauthorized or illegal access or control over the computers. Interaction with the cross- section of computer users has shown that in their anxiety to put the computer software into standard activity. Cyber criminals get to intrude and steal after or erase substantial data because they allow the access control and security measures.
• Loss of evidence. Web provides anonymity to the cyber criminals which helps him to indulge in criminal activity without leaving any evidence and even if some evidence is left it is not adequate to convince the police that a criminal case can be filed against the perpetrator.
• Jurisdictional uncertainty. Cyber crimes cut across territorial borders which undermine the feasibility and legitimacy of applying domestic laws which are normally based on geographical or territorial jurisdiction, Cyber crimes are committed through cyberspace network interconnectivity and therefore, they do not recognize geographical limitations because of their transnational nature. In the absence of a single internationally recognized code of law and procedure governing cyber crimes, the law enforcing authorities of individual countries find it extremely difficult to tackle cyber crimes and criminals while applying their territorial law.

Conclusion

Every coin has two faces. In the same way, new technologies have its pros and cons. There is an immediate need to curb these crimes. It’s like tit for tat sort of circumstances where the technology can be controlled only by a comprehension of the technology. Apart from this, there are many ways from which we can prevent ourselves from these crimes by not allowing access on unknown links, specially the links containing http, to make sure whether the link has virus or not you can go and paste the link on the virus total website. One should attend awareness camps, and must not share OTP, card details and personal information with anyone.