admin Cyber Bullying
Cyber bullying is a form of bullying that takes place on digital devices through Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, text messaging, online chat rooms, email, online gaming communities etc. It includes sending, posting or sharing negative and harmful content about someone else which can cause embarrassment or humiliation. According to a study led by Microsoft in 2012, India was third when it comes to cyberbullying cases. Cyber bullying is often seen as less harmful because it exists online and people often say “Just turn off your phone and forget it” but it is not as simple as that. It can be intimidating, dangerous, invasive for the people who actually face it.
There are different types of cyber bullying such as:
- Doxing: It includes publishing personal information about an individual online for the purpose of defaming or harassing the victim.
- Harassment: It includes posting hurtful and intimidating messages online to someone with the intention of harming the person or causing a sense of fear.
- Impersonation: This involves creating fake accounts or somehow gaining access to a person’s real account in order to post things which can damage their reputation.
- Cyber stalking: In this, someone tracks or monitors a person’s online activity and uses it to harass the individual.
- Spam: This implies that someone continuously keeps sending messages which might not be defamatory but gets irritating after a point. At present, we have the option of blocking the individual from the social media platform to avoid spamming.
There is no specific legislation in India which deals with cyber bullying but there are provisions in the Indian Penal Code and the IT act to deal with such matters. The different laws related to cybercrime spaces are:
| 1 | Violation of privacy | 66E of the IT Act |
| 2 | Publishing of obscene material or sexually explicit act in electronic form | 67 and 67 A of the IT Act |
| 3 | Defamatory messages | 499 of IPC |
| 4 | Stalking | 354 D of IPC |
| 5 | Words or gestures intended to insult the modesty of a woman | 509 of IPC |
| 6 | Anonymous criminal intimidation | 507 of IPC |
| 7 | Sexual harassment | 354 A of IPC |
| 8 | *Repealed*Offensive messages through communication services | 66A of IT Act |
Relevant cases
Manish Kathuria case was the very first reported case of cyber stalking in India. Manish stole the identity of a woman named Ritu Kohli and used to chat in her name using her name in an obscene manner. Stealing the identity of a person is an offence under the IT act and is a type of cyberbullying but because this case precedes 2000, that is before the enactment of IT Act, the case was filed under Section 509 of IPC.
Karan Girotra v. State involved sharing obscene images of a girl which is a type of cyberbullying and it highlighted the nature of the Indian judiciary towards such cases. A girl named Shivani Saxena had filed a divorce by mutual consent. In the midst of it, she met Karan Girotra, whom she met online and they wanted to marry each other. On the pretext of introducing her to his family members, Karan Girotra drugged her in his house and sexually assaulted her and took pictures. After that, he continued sending obscene pictures to her and blackmailed her to marry her. Girotra eventually called off the marriage after which Saxena filed a complaint under Section 66A of the IT Act. The court shockingly held that Saxena had consented to the intercourse and had only filed the case when Girotra refused to marry her.
Problems with tackling cyber bullying
In India, it is the embarrassment and the fear of getting their freedom compromised which stops the victim of cyber bullying from addressing the issue. People are either unaware of cyberbullying or choose to ignore considering it as trivial in nature. Also, we have very little understanding of how to behave online. The lack of environment to deal with issues like this is why the crime of cyberbullying gets mismanaged. The best advantage of a cyber bully is the anonymity because of which it becomes difficult for the law enforcement agencies and the victim to trace the wrongdoer. And as it is well-known that cyber-crimes are global in nature as these crimes can be committed through a server located anywhere in the world which brings in the problem of jurisdiction.
Conclusion
The interesting aspect of cyber space is that it is growing and evolving. Cyber bullying can take place in many forms and not all types are covered under the present laws. There is a need to define separate laws for cyber-crime as the mode, gravity and targets of such crimes are different and vast. The opinion of a psychiatrist must be taken before forming bullying laws as bullying mainly affects the psyche of a person. The recent ‘Bois Locker Room’ incident clearly shows the lack of understanding and awareness amongst the people about the seriousness of cyberbullying and cyber-crimes and its prevalence in the cyberspace.
By- Mona Das
online cyber bullying is one of the most serious crimes that today’s social media users face. People never usually disclose or report these crimes when they are victims, one of the primary reasons being they don’t have any knowledge about the same. The article is useful in all the ways possible as it discloses everything related to the crime which everyone should be aware of.
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Cyber bullying is done by many people and that should be stopped, nice article very informative
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This concept of cyber bullying is very serious and in day to day life many people face such troubles and because there is no separate law but some sections to be applied and of which people are unaware and don’t file complaint for the same.
Cases of cyber bullying are increasing at an alarming rate during this pandemic situation.
This article is very helpful and informative.
It provide people with the knowledge that they can take legal help when they come across such activities online.
The concept of cyberbullying is really harmful to the mental health of a person. This article nicely mentions about the provisions mentioned in our Indian legal system for cyberbullying. It also included the types of cyberbullying. Its a serious crime and should be addressed with full strictness by the system. The thing that the article mentions about consulting a psychiatrist is suitable because a person should be mentally prepared in such circumstances.
This blog is very informative regarding cyber bullying. Nasty or humiliating comments on posts, photos and in chat rooms are the bullying content which effects the mental health of a person so badly.
Bullying should be noted as an crime and not just any but an heinous offence. It leaves an considerable amount of stress and effect the overall development of an child or teen. It is one of many reasons behind a child for opting for crime . Cyberbullying is no different from an actual bullying situation it could also be life threatening therefore this should be taught to all the adolescent to how to tackle with such situations and handle them also what would be the result if one does such an act.