Cyber Laws
According to the definition of E-governance provided by the World Bank, it is the approach of governmental agencies to use technologies related to communication and information for the purpose of transforming and strengthening relations with businesses, citizens, and other governmental agencies. The IT Act, 2000, defines one of its prime objectives as electronic governance or e-governance promotion. Let us discuss electronic records and E-governance in detail.
Mention of e-Governance and Associated Provisions in the IT Act, 2000
To know what an e-record is, it is important to understand the electronic record's meaning. The electronic record meaning is best described in the legal recognition of electronic records, digital signatures, and associated topics, for which the following provisions of the IT Act, 2000 were formulated.
Legal Recognition of Electronic Records (Mentioned in Section 4 of the Act)
For any important point to become a law, it is needed to be written, printed, or typewritten. It can also be considered to be a law if the information is provided in an electronic form. However, the electronic form must be accessible all the time for subsequent referencing.
Legal Recognition of Signatures (Mentioned in Section 5 of the Act)
Most of the documents related to a person are authenticated by his or her signature. If the person can produce a digital form of his signature acceptable by the central government, then the person is legally allowed to validate the documents with the digital signature. This is the summary of the legal recognition of digital signature provision.
Application of Digital Signature and Electronic Records in Government and its Agencies (Mentioned in Section 6 of the Act)
According to this provision, if the law allows a person
To fill an application, form, or document related to Government authorities or related agencies,
To issue or grant sanction, licence, approval, or permit in a particular way,
To Pay or receive money in a certain manner then the person can certainly do so in an electronic form if he maintains the government-approved format.
Additionally, the manner and format of creating, issuing, and filing electronic records, and the methods of payment of fees for the same may be prescribed.
Retention of Electronic Records (Mentioned in Section 7 of the Act)
The law can also retain the electronic form of any information, document, or record if it needs to do so. Retention of records can take place if the records are accessible and available for subsequent referencing, the format of the information is unchanged, or accurately represent the original information, and adequate information of the destination, origin, and date and time of receipt or dispatch of the record. The law does not hold for automatically generated information related to the dispatch or receipt of the record. However, the provision does not apply to laws that expressly provide for electronic retention of documents, records, and information.
Publications of rules and regulations in Electronic Gazette (mentioned in Section 8 of the Act)
If the law requires to publish any official rule, regulation, notification, by-law and related matters in the Official Gazette, then it can also do so in the Electronic Gazette. The publication date of such rules and regulations will be the same as its first published date in any form of the Gazette.
Section 6, 7, and 8 does not Provide the Right to insist Acceptance of an Electronic Form of the Document (Mentioned in Section 9 of the Act)
The previous sections 6, 7, and 8 do not grant the right to any person to insist on the issuance, acceptance, retention, or creation of any document or monetary transactions directly from the central or the state government, ministry of the department, or associated agencies.
Provide Power to the Central Government to Make Rules for Legal Recognition of Digital Signatures (Mentioned in Section 10 of the Act)
According to the IT Act, 2000, the central government has the power to prescribe:
Format and manner of affixation of the digital signature.
Digital signature type.
Identification procedure for the person who affixes the digital signature.
Determines the procedures to justify the security, integrity, and confidentiality of electronic records.
Any other legal procedures for digital signature.
Data Protection
According to Section 43A of the IT Act, 2000, if the body responsible for maintaining the security of personal information and data in a computer resource shows negligence leading to wrongful gain or loss, then the body is liable for paying damages as compensation up to 5 crore rupees. Additionally, the Government of India incorporated the Information Technology Rules, 2011, under section 43A of the IT Act, 2000, which applies the rules of security to all corporate bodies in India.
Interesting Facts about Cyber Security
The origin of the word “cyber” can be traced back to a time when there was no trace of the internet at all. Back then, the word cyber was used in association with computers and their networks, and even virtual reality at times. This usage can further be traced to a time (the 1940s) when the word “cyber” started to get pushed into English by Norbert Wiener, a reputable scientist of that time.
In the 1970s, Bob Thomas, a researcher, came up with a certain computer network called “CREEPER” that was able to move across a network called “ARPANET”, and wherever it went, it would leave a trail behind it. This is when the concept of cyber security was first utilized.
FAQs on Cyber Laws - Electronic Record and E-Governance
1. What is cybercrime? Explain in detail.
Cybercrime falls under the radar of a criminal activity that is commenced through computers or takes place over the internet in general or any other technology, as long as it is recognised by the International Technology Act. The culprits who commit these kinds of crimes can either be individuals or a group of individuals working together. Some examples of what classifies as a cybercrime are as follows:
Identity theft
Email or internet fraud
Cyber Espionage
Phishing scams
Theft of financial information
Hacking/breach of data
2. What is the importance of Cyber Laws? Why do we need them?
With the advent of cybercrimes in the contemporary world, there is also an increasing need to get educated on cyber security and Cyber Laws. All the aspects of transactions and other such activities that take place on the internet, cyberspace, and the World Wide Web are managed by Cyber Laws. These laws help to avoid people from becoming victims of any sort of cybercrime and help those individuals who already have fallen prey to such crimes, get justice. Cyber Laws are created to look upon certain activities that the conventional law isn’t always able to manage. So, the complex issues related to cyberspace, require Cyber Laws to deal with them because these work in such a way that they not only regulate a safe space for individuals on the internet but also manage a number of other aspects along with regulating the various mechanisms required to keep the country unblemished from cybercrimes as possible.
3. Define an E-record.
There is a lot of information that is recorded by a computer. This information is further used for receiving, producing, conducting, or finishing a specific activity that may either be related to an individual or a particular agency. For example, electronic spreadsheets, email messages, databases, digital images, etc., are all electronic records. And the development of all the important automated processes which said individual or agency makes use of in order to manage their electronic records is known as electronic recordkeeping or ERK. This process of record-keeping helps in preserving both the content of these E-records and their structure as well.
4. What areas do Cyber Laws cover?
There are a number of different areas covered by Cyber Laws and various purposes they serve. These are as follows:
Copyright violation is an area that is covered by Cyber Laws, aiming to keep an individual’s or a company’s right to benefit from their own creative works safe. This is a way of safeguarding their copyrights as it ensures that no such violations occur.
Cyber Laws also cover the aspect of online frauds, credit card thefts, identity thefts, etc., by taking action towards anybody who goes ahead and commits the aforementioned crimes. The culprit, once caught, is likely to face state or confederate charges for their actions and that is where the Cyber Lawyers come into play.
A very imperative aspect of Cyber Laws is the freedom of speech as it grants individuals the freedom and right to speak their minds on online platforms as and when needed.
Defamation laws are also another important aspect of Cyber Laws. These help people and companies whose reputation is tarnished due to fake allegations or false public statements.
Making use of the internet or other forms of electronic communication to harass or stalk someone is cybercrime and the Cyber Laws see to it that such cases don’t happen.
Cyber Laws also cover the area of employment law. When you click on the small box that asks you if you agree with the terms and conditions of that particular website, you’re utilising the Cyber Law.
5. Can a person insist on using a digital signature for work with official government documents?
The Information Technology Act, 2000, allows for the recognition of the electronic records and digital signatures in the official records and documents. However, the Act does not grant any person to insist on the use of digital signatures in any document or money-related transaction with the Central or the State government or any of their official agencies. The law provides the Central government with the power to prescribe and make amends to the format and type of digital signatures that are accepted. They can also determine the identification procedure of the person providing the signature.
6. What Provisions does the Information Technology Act, 2000 have for Electronic Records?
The Information Technology Act, 2000, recognizes electronic records by its seven provisions (Section 4-10). It provides information on legal recognition to electronic records, digital signatures, application of electronic records and digital signatures, retention of electronic records, the publication of rules and regulations in the Electronic Gazette, and the power of the Central Government of India to prescribe changes in the format and associated aspects of the digital signature. However, the Act debars the right of a person to insist on digital signatures during any governmental transactions or transaction with its associated agencies.