Emerging Trends in Cyber Crimes in India: An Over View

Abstract

In the 21st century it’s not going to matter how Many arms you carry, but instead how many Buttons you press.Computers and internet are becoming an essential part of our daily life. They are being used by individuals and societies to make their life easier. They use them for storing information, processing data, sending and receiving messages, communications, controlling machines, typing, editing, designing, drawing, and almost all aspects of life. Cyber Crime may be generally understood as “unlawful acts wherein the computer is a tool, a target or both” . There are many forms of crimes on the internet. Some are not dangerous enough to be deemed as a crime, rather only a simple spread of information. They are simple show of skills and are harmless. Initially, when man had invented the computer and the technology for communicating between computers had been evolved, he would have never thought that the cyber space he was creating could be flooded with crime called cyber-crime. But now almost all of us might have heard of the terms computer crime, cyber-crime, e-crime, hi-tech crime or electronic crime which is nothing but an activity done with a criminal intention in cyber space. In simple words, it is an activity which is generally criminal in nature, where a computer or network is the source, tool, target, or place of a crime. To say in one line as understood by the researchers, ‘cyber-crime refers to all the activities done with criminal intention in cyberspace’. Such crime involves an information technology infrastructure, including unauthorized access, illegal interception by technical means of non-public transmissions of computer data to, from or within a computer system, data interference by unauthorized damaging, deletion, deterioration, alteration or suppression of computer data, systems interference by interfering with the functioning of a computer system with inputting, transmitting, damaging, deleting, deteriorating, altering or suppressing computer data, misuse of devices, forgery (ID theft), and electronic fraud.In the present e-Age, ‘Crime’ has extended itself beyond physical assault or mental torture; now it also affects our e-life. E-Life means our existence & living in the cyber world. Every one of us is a part of this cyber world, directly or indirectly since computers & internet are now an integral part of our personal & professional life. Just like any other invention, Computers & Internet are a boon to human kind if used in a right way and to the advantage of the society, otherwise a curse However, as we all know, everything has its pros and cons and so computers & internet are not exceptions. If we consider ‘Cyber Crime’ as virus then it would not be untrue to say that this virus is corrupting man’s significant development (computers and internet) which is responsible for developing civilized society for men. Cyber Crime is a menace all over the world and is the one of most difficult and challenging one to detect and investigate. You will find it interesting to note that even the official website of the Cyber Crime Investigation Cell of Crime Branch Mumbai quotes “The invisible criminal is dangerous than the visible one”.