Enough Law of Horses and Elephants Debated…, …Let’s Discuss the Cyber Law Seriously

Abstract

The unique characteristic of cyberspace like anonymity in space and time, absence of geographical borders, capability to throw surprises with rapidity and potential to compromise assets in virtual and real world has attracted the attention of criminal minds to commit crimes in cyberspace. The law of crimes in the physical world faces challenge in its application to the crimes in cyberspace due to issues of sovereignty, jurisdiction, trans-national investigation and extra-territorial evidence. In this paper an attempt has been made to apply routine activity theory (RAT) of crime in physical world to crime scene cyberspace. A model for crime in cyberspace has been developed and it has been argued that the criminal law of crime in physical world is inadequate in its application to crimes in virtual world. To handle crime in cyberspace there is a need to address issues of ‘applicable laws and ‘conflicting jurisdiction by regulating the architecture of the internet through special laws of cyberspace. A case has been put forward for having an International Convention of Cybercrime with Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime as yard stick.