Open Access Research Article
CYBERVIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN BY: TANISHKA TRIVEDI
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Article Details
CYBERVIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
AUTHORED BY: TANISHKA TRIVEDI
INSTITUTION: Bharati Vidyapeeth (Deemed To Be University)
New Law College, Pune
ABSTRACT:
These
days, there is an increase in crime against women from all walks of life.
Additionally, since technology permeates almost every part of our lives, there
has been a marked rise in cybercrimes against women. Cyberviolence, a subset of
cybercrime, is defined as "the use of computer resource to cause, facilitate
or threaten violence against individuals, that usually causes them
psychological, emotional, sexual or emotional harm," though a precise
definition is still lacking. People often underestimate and trivialize the
internet, and therefore cyberviolence is not treated as seriously as it should
be. For them, anything happening online is not worth paying attention to. Most
cybercrimes, particularly those targeting women, begin with plans to cause
mischief online. They fail to realize, nevertheless, that women frequently
experience a great deal of stress and difficulty because of their mischievous
actions. More so since the social framework of the society constantly seeks to
oppress women and places the blame on them. Women often withdraw from
cyberspace due to occurrences of online harassment, abuse, and threats via
email or social media platforms. Because the internet also provides anonymity,
people who abuse women frequently get away with it. In this article, I've
talked about the different forms of cyberviolence that women experience and how
it negatively impacts them... I have also examined several legislations, such
as the Information Technology Act of 2000 and the IPC's criminal provisions,
that are designed to safeguard women in the event of such situations. However,
criminal penalties alone are insufficient to counteract any societal evil, in
this case, cybercrimes; instead, raising people's understanding and
consciousness about appropriate internet usage is crucial. I've also talked
about the precautions that people should take to stop the growing trend of
cybercrime against women. In the end, I've concentrated on the solutions
offered to cybercrime victims and the systemic adjustments needed to
successfully stop the growing trend of cybercrimes.
INTRODUCTION:
Cyberviolence
can be defined as any online behavior that intends to intimidate or cause
adverse effects on the psychological, emotional, physical, sexual, or financial
state of a person /group.
Cyberviolence
is often overlooked by people and not taken as seriously as it should be,
because people forget that cyberviolence may start online, but it has
detrimental effects on the victims and their families. The victims of tech–driven
violence often tend to experience anxiety, stress, sleeplessness, suicidal
thoughts, and the feeling of always being monitored.
Thanks to
technological advancements, everyone is familiar with using the internet these
days. The Internet is available to almost everyone, and although it offers
numerous benefits, there are drawbacks. Now, practically anyone may locate
someone online and inflict mental distress upon them.
Cyberviolence
is gender-neutral and affects both men and women, but since women and children
are the most vulnerable sections of society, they are more likely to experience
severe and traumatic types of cyberviolence. Cyberviolence can take many forms,
such as non-consensual pornography, hate speech, sextortion, gender-based
slurs, online bullying, harassment, and cyberstalking.
CYBERVIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN:
For
generations, women in the patriarchal society were oppressed and treated as
second-class citizens. They were always denied the rights, opportunities, and
exposure that they rightly deserved.
With the
advancement of technology women’s emancipation is now feasible, and they are
gradually attempting to free themselves from male dominance. However, incidents
of online harassment, assault, and threats via email or social media platforms
frequently drive women to retreat from cyberspace. Since the internet provides
anonymity, those who commit violence against women frequently escape
punishment. Certain groups of women and girls may be particularly vulnerable to
this kind of violence because of their social roles. In the digital sphere,
public figures, politicians, journalists, video game creators and players,
environmental and other activists, and women's rights defenders are more active
than ever. This is because they can use the platform to access and share
information, gain visibility, expose human rights violations, and inspire
people to act. Being in the forefront, though, puts them in danger of more
violence and smear campaigns meant to undermine their credibility as
individuals and as professionals.
TYPES OF CYBERVIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN:
·
CYBERSTALKING: Cyberstalking is the practice of harassing or
stalking someone online using the internet and other technologies. It can take
the shape of texts, emails, posts on social media, and more, and it's typically
more methodical, persistent, and planned. Even when the receiver says they're unhappy
or requests that the person stop, the conversations usually continue. A person
may experience fear, concern, anxiety, or worry because of unsuitable and
occasionally even upsetting content addressed to them.
·
CYBERBULLYING: Cyberbullying is the practice of intimidating,
threatening, embarrassing, or single-handedly targeting someone online. It is
anything that is intended to offend, harass, or cause pain to another person
that is uploaded online. Threats made online, as well as insulting, obnoxious,
or invasive texts, tweets, posts, comments, or communications, all count.
Cyberbullying also refers to offensive images, texts, or remarks that are
posted online and are not removed, even when the victim is asked to. The victim
of the abuse has no idea how many people—possibly hundreds of people—have seen
the posts or messages, and it is difficult to track down and manage. Every time
a person checks their computer or smartphone, they may experience constant
humiliation.
·
DOXING: [1]Doxing
refers to the act of obtaining and disclosing the personal information of
others without their consent. Names, residence addresses, and other private
information about the victim and their family are disclosed through doxing.
Also, since it allows the victims to be physically located, it can be a
precursor to physical violence and crimes like stalking, etc. Motives could be
anything from extortion to financial harm to exposure to harassment to even
singling out the victim in real life. To further humiliate and expose the
victim, doxing may also entail falsifying information.
·
CYBERGROOMING: When a person (often an adult) befriends a
young person online and manipulates them, creating an emotional bond to abuse,
exploit, or trafficking them sexually, this is known as cyber grooming. The
main purpose of cyber grooming is to win someone over with trust and get
sensitive information from them, frequently of a sexual nature (such as sexual
discussions, images, or videos), which can then be used to threaten or
blackmail them into providing more offensive content.
·
SEXTORTION: Sextortion is when someone threatens to disseminate
your intimate details, nude or explicit images, or videos online if you don’t
meet their demands. Perpetrators usually do this to demand money, sexual favors,
or more sexual images from the victim. They also threaten to reveal the
explicit material to the victim's friends, family, coworkers, and other
contacts. An alternative is that the video or image might be posted to a
sizable pornographic website.
·
CYBERSEX TRAFFICKING: Cybersex trafficking is
very different from physical sex trafficking because in this the victim is
unlikely to come in contact with the perpetrators. Rather, the traffickers film
or photograph the victim participating in personal or sexual actions from a central
location, and they subsequently, sell the footage online to clients and sexual
predators.
THE LEGAL
FRAMEWORK TO PROTECT WOMEN FROM CYBER VIOLENCE:
« The Information
Technology Act of 2000, which was later amended in 2008,2015 and then in 2021 was
passed to place restrictions on the ability of these attackers to commit
cybercrimes. In common usage, this is referred to as the Cyber-law. The
penalties and damages for technology-related offenses are outlined in this Act.
If someone has been the victim of cybercrime, she might file a lawsuit to hold
the offender accountable.
The IT Act has the following provisions for protecting women
against cybercrimes:
·
SECTION 66C:[2]
Electronic signature or other identity theft like using other's password or electronic
signature etc.
·
SECTION 66D: [3]Cheating
by a person on using a computer resource or a communication device shall be
punished with imprisonment of either description of three years in addition to
potentially facing a punishment of one lakh rupees.
·
SECTION 66E: [4]Anyone found to have
intentionally or knowingly taken a picture of a private area or person without
that person's consent or under circumstances breaching that person's privacy
may risk a fine of up to two lakh rupees or a maximum sentence of three years
in prison.
·
SECTION [5]
Penalties for disseminating or publishing obscene material online. It
carries a punishment of three years imprisonment and a fine which may extend to
five lakh rupees on a first conviction, and in the case of subsequent
conviction, imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years and with a
penalty which may extend to ten lakh rupees.
·
SECTION 67 A: [6]Penalties for
publishing or disseminating electronic content that includes sexually explicit
acts, etc. On the first conviction, the act carries a maximum sentence of five
years in prison and a fine of ten lakh rupees. If the act is found to have been
committed again, the penalties increase to seven years in prison and ten lakh
rupees in fine.
·
SECTION 67 B: [7]Penalties for
publishing or disseminating electronic content that shows young children
engaging in sexually explicit behavior, etc. For the first conviction, the
punishment is a maximum sentence of five years in jail and a fine; for
successive convictions, the maximum sentence is seven years in jail and a fine.
·
SECTION 72: [8]. Penalties for violating privacy and confidentiality. The
punishment is imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years or with a
fine or with both
« Besides the IT Act
2000, the IPC (Indian Penal Code) which is the general criminal law of
the land, also prescribes certain acts against women as punishable under the
law.
·
SECTION 354A: [9]According
to Section 354A, a man is guilty of sexual harassment if he does any of the
following: he shows pornography to a woman against her will, demands or requests
sexual favors, or makes sexual remarks. He may face a fine or perhaps three
years of rigorous imprisonment. The first two cases carry a maximum sentence of
one year in jail, a fine, or both.
·
SECTION 354C: [10]According
to Section 354C, ‘Voyeurism’ is defined as an act of capturing a picture of a
woman performing a private act and/or disseminating it online without the
woman's consent. For it to be considered "voyeurism," The woman must
be in a circumstance where she would "usually expect not to be seen,
either by the offender or by anyone else carrying out the offender's
instructions." If found guilty under this section, the offender may be
sentenced to a maximum of three years in jail for the first conviction and
seven years for the second. There may also be a fine.
·
SECTION 354 D: [11]This section talks
about stalking. When a man approaches or follows a woman despite her clear lack
of interest in him, or when he keeps an eye on a woman's online activity,
Internet usage, or electronic correspondence, it is considered stalking. A guy
facing stalking charges might go to prison for up to three years and be liable
to a fine; if convicted again, the maximum sentence would be five years and a
fine.
The CCPWC
scheme was introduced by the Government of India to provide practical responses
to cybercrimes against India's women and children. Through an online portal for
reporting cybercrimes, it enables victims of cybercrime to complain.
Information
about local and federal law enforcement and regulatory organizations is also
available on the platform. To prevent cybercrimes, the CCPWC also runs
awareness campaigns that begin in schools
«
National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal
The
government has created the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal
(www.cybercrime.gov.in) to allow the public to report incidents related to
all types of cybercrimes, emphasizing cyber crimes against women and children.
To
facilitate the prompt reporting of financial fraud and stop money from being
embezzled by scammers, a module of the Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud
Reporting and Management System has also been implemented.
SUGGESTIVE
MEASURES TO COUNTER CYBERVIOLENCE AND CYBERCRIME:
·
The user is required to maintain her active security settings. A
friend request from an unknown individual should not be accepted.
·
The password must be changed from time to time, and the same
password must not be used in many places.
·
As far as possible, one should avoid opening anonymous email.
·
The user should never reply to messages sent by strangers and
stay away from arguing and flirting with them.
·
The privacy policies that are provided with the software and on
websites should be read with special attention.
·
A victim of cybercrime should as soon as possible notify the
local cyber cell or a police station or a complaint can also be submitted to
the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal...
CONCLUSION:
Cyberviolence
is the new age crime of the current fast-moving society, which is taking
hideous proportions and is largely directed towards women and children.
Especially in India, cybercrimes and in general any other crime against women
are still taken lightly and are usually considered the women's fault. The
perpetrators of the crime are never held accountable for anything, while the
women are always at the receiving end of all the vilification and mudslinging.
Even though
laws are in place to protect women's rights, we as members of a civilized
society also must ensure that the underlying source of this issue is found and
fixed. Men's deep-seated disdain for women and their ignorance of cyberspace
are the main causes of these atrocities. Many individuals still find it hard to
accept that it is illegal to even post someone's photos online. Young children
should learn to respect women at an early age. Therefore, in addition to
harsher criminal changes, a significant overhaul of the educational system is
required to combat cybercrimes against women. Women also must educate
themselves to take preventive actions, such as being cautious when sharing
pictures and videos of themselves and their loved ones online, being cautious
when chatting with strangers online, and safeguarding their passwords and other
sensitive data.
Therefore,
there is an urgent need to bring awareness and consciousness among women to be
careful while using Internet facilities. they in any case become victims of
cyber violence, they should be able to speak against it.
[1] Kaspersky,
https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/definitions/what-is-doxing, (last
visited Feb 10 ,2024,22:25)
[3] The Information Technology Act
,2008 ,§66D, No 10,Act of Parliament,2008 ( India).
[4] The Information Technology Act
,2008, §66E, No.10, Act of Parliament, 2008 (India).
[5] The Information Technology Act
,2008,§ 67, No 10, Act of Parliament ,2008 (India).
[6] The Information Technology
Act,2008,§67A, No.10, Act of Parliament ,2008 (India).
[7] The Information Technology Act,
2008, §67B, No. 10, Act pf Parliament ,2008 (India).
[9] The Indian Penal Code ,1860,354A,
No.45, 1860, (India).
[10] The Indian Penal Code, 1860, 354C,
No.45, 1860, (India)
[11] The Indian Penal Code, 1860,354D,
No.45, 1860, (India).
[12] Parth0501,Cyber crimes against
women ,Legal Service India(Feb 13,2024,22:00), Cyber Crimes Against Women
(legalserviceindia.com)
Article Information
CYBERVIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN BY: TANISHKA TRIVEDI
Authors: TANISHKA TRIVEDI
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2024/02/22
- Issue 7
About Journal
International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis
- Abbreviation IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
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