Legal Remedies Against Cyber Harassment and Online Hate Speech in India

Author:Apurva Sanjay Shah

Editor: I Sharan

Introduction:

The internet has become integral to our lives in this IT era. During the past few years, widespread internet and technology use has influenced how people communicate. In the recent few years, there has been a significant evolution in the internet and technology involved in our day-to-day communication. Instead of more personal methods of interaction face-to-face calls, emails and social media made people more connected regardless of the distance.

Cyber harassment, also known as online harassment, is a very big umbrella covering the different forms of abuse online: stalking, bullying, doxxing, and many more. Online hate speech on the other hand involves the use of offensive language on online platforms against specific individuals or groups based on attributes like religion, gender, race, etc. Recognizing how serious these issues are, my study aims to create an analysis of legal provisions and procedures existing to combat such, and the noteworthy cases in this area. This is an important study to take up, considering the cyber harassment and online hate speech that has turned into a serious violation of people’s dignity security, and the health of an online community.

 Keywords:

  1. cyber harassment
  2. online hate speech
  3. ITA 2000
  4. ITA Amendments 2008
  5. Section 66A

Meaning, Definition and Explanation:

Cyber harassment:

According to the United Nations, “Cyber harassment is a threat via the use of digital technologies. It can take place on social media, messaging platforms, and cell phones. It is repeated behaviour, aimed at threatening, scaring, shaming, and silencing those who are targeted.[1]”

It is a problem that affects various age groups. Moreover, it is a common reason linked to negative social effects such as depression and suicide. It generally refers to any action performed through means of digital media by individuals or groups that communicate violent, threatening, or aggressive messages with a malicious intention of causing harm or discomfort to others.

Online hate speech:

According to The Council of Europe, “hate speech is understood as all types of expression that incite, promote, spread, or justify violence, hatred, or discrimination against a person or group of persons, or that denigrates them, because of their real or attributed personal characteristics or statuses such as race, colour, language, religion, nationality, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation.”[2]

There is no such proper definition for online hate speech. The intention behind online hate speech is to provoke violence, hatred, or prejudice against targeted individuals. Online hate speech is abusive since it targets the dignity of an individual but it also concerns social issues as it promotes discrimination in society.

Types of cyber harassment:

Cyber harassment is a wide term that includes various forms of online abuse. These forms can be classified based on the severity of crimes. They are as follows:

  1. Cyberbullying:

Cyberbullying is intentional and repetitive. it can be defined as an act of sharing or posting offensive, negative content concerning other individuals. posting private information which can cause humiliation to others also comes under the scope of cyberbullying

  1. Cyberstalking:

Cyberstalking is an act of using communication technologies like email direct messaging and others to stalk, threaten, manipulate, or control minors habitually. It can include examples like tracking someone’s online activity or location, etc

  1. Online impersonation:

 It is the act of using another person’s information such as name, mobile number, or social media ID to commit fraudulent activities like phishing, data breaches, financial scams, etc. The general intention of such acts is to extract money by trapping the victims by illegal means.

  1. Doxing:

Doxing is the process of searching for and posting sensitive information, statements, etc to exploit, harass, or cause humiliation to another person. It can be targeted to a specific individual or organization. It is usually done by posting personal information like email, address, and phone number without consent.

  1. Revenge Porn:

Revenge pornography also known as revenge porn involves the act of publishing sexually explicit images or videos to insult or bring humiliation to individuals. Such material can be used to blackmail the victims into relationships, to threaten them, or to extract money from them.

Historical Background:

The journey of the Internet in India began in 1990 when public Internet access was established. During those days, there were no legal frameworks addressing issues like cyber harassment or hate speech. Thus at that time till the year 2000, the Information Technology ACT was aimed mostly at e-commerce, digital signatories, and cybercrimes like hacking and trespassing.

  • The original IT Act of 2000: With cyberspace being so vibrant with multifaceted diverse types of cybercrimes, the IT Act had provisions that could be applied rarely. However, its first try was a large-scale bill designed to fight different types of obscene material posted on the World Wide Web.
  • Amendments to ITA 2008: In 2008, the Indian government recognized how constantly changing are cyber threats and amended the IT Act which included several additional sections like the following:
    • Section 66A: This was a big step in combating online harassment and hate speech. It recited measures for the prosecution of sending any information that is grossly offensive or of a menacing character.
    • Section 66E: This section explained the invasion of privacy and more specifically, it outlined capturing, publishing, or transmitting the image of private areas of individuals without their consent.
    • Section 67: It was expanded to incorporate the penalty for the publication or transmission of obscene material in an electronic form. This hence indirectly covered some of the variables of online harassment. Challenges and Criticism

While these amendments were needed, Section 66A remained highly controversial. After a landmark judgment named Shreya Singhal v. Union of India, this section was stricken down declaring it unconstitutional. However, other sections of the IT Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) continued to provide remedies.

  • Recent Initiatives and Policy Changes

Recently, the government and courts have further taken the following steps to combat the menace of cyberstalking/harassment and online hate speech:

CCPWC—Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children: It is a scheme created to improve the efficiency of policing agencies in the fight against cybercrimes against women and children.

National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal: This government online portal is used to report cybercrimes especially those in the area of harassment and hate speech online.

Legal Provisions:

Information Technology Act, 2000 also known as IT Act

  1. Section 66A: Before this, “it was about the case of sending obscene messages, etc. through any aids for communication, etc. It defined the punishment for any person who transmitted information, that was obscene, menacing, and caused annoyance, inconvenience, danger, obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred, or ill will.” But the year 2015 struck Section 66A and held it unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of India in its landmark judgment of Shreya Singhal v Union Of India, on the ground that the words used in Section 66A were unconstitutional and very vague it became too broad a provision which at the most, could only violate the right of free speech and expression.
  2. Section 67: “This section relates to the distribution or communication of obscene matter employing any electronic process. It gaols for a term not exceeding three years a fine for the first offence and a severe penalty for the second offense.”
  3. Section 67A and 67B:
    • Section 67A: “This section relates to the distribution or broadcast of material of this nature, as extended to a higher level of penalty.”
    • Section 67B: “This section concerns child pornography and restricts it as a creation subject, a transmission method, and a browsing path.”
  4. Section 69A: “It provides for the power to issue directions for blocking public access to any information, through any computer resource, and if this access is considered to be harmful to the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security, defence, friendly relations with foreign states, and public order. It concerns also the prevention of incitement for the commission of any cognizable offence.”

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita,2023(BNS)

  • Section 78: This section defines and punishes stalking, and it includes cyberstalking, thus thereby covering surveillance of the use by a woman of the internet, E-mail, or any other form of electronic communications. It states that “ (1) Any man who follows a woman and contacts, or attempts to contact such woman to foster personal interaction repeatedly despite a clear indication of disinterest by such woman; or monitors the use by a woman of the internet, e-mail or any other form of electronic communication, commits the offence of stalking.” The punishment is imprisonment for up to three years for the first conviction and up to five years for subsequent convictions.”
  • Sections 356: This section deals with the question of defamation. According to section 356, “Whoever, by words either spoken or intended to be read or by signs or by visible representations, makes or publishes in any manner, any imputation concerning any person intending to harm, or knowing or having reason to believe that such imputation will harm, the reputation of such person, is said, to defame that person.” The section states that “this offence shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years or a fine or both or with community service.”
  • Section 351: “Criminal intimidation that includes threats to murder someone, or to cause grievous bodily harm, falls under this section and it covers threats made through electronic means.”
  • Section 79: “This section concerns itself with acts that are meant to outrage the modesty of a woman either by words, gestures, or by any other means using an electronic device. It sanctions simple imprisonment which may take a maximum of three years and may include fines also.”

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 widely known as the POCSO Act is a law in practice to prevent offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment, and pornography against children. It also lays down strict penalties for using children for pornographic content through electronic media as well.

 Procedure for reporting Cyber Crimes:

There are two ways to file cybercrime complaints in India. One can report the crime through an online portal by the government or by approaching the nearest police station.

Complaint portals:

  1. CYBERCRIME PORTAL – Victims of cybercrime can directly file a complaint on the portal by using the website https://cybercrime.gov.in/. They can file a complaint against various types of cybercrimes by choosing options like reporting cybercrime related to women/children or reporting other cybercrimes. There is an option to file a complaint anonymously.  
  2. ONLINE CRIME REPORTING PORTAL – Another way to report cybercrime online is through the website of the Ministry of Home Affairshttps://digitalpolice.gov.in. You can register a complaint in the section “Services for Citizen” and click on “Report a Cyber Crime.” Here, you can provide information about the offender, the victim, and the incident, along with any supporting evidence, such as screenshots. You have the option to file a complaint anonymously or with your identity. Also, the complaints can be tracked down.

Cyber cell:

Every state has cyber cells and certain police stations may have a department dedicated to investigating cybercrimes.in many states one can file a complaint by visiting cyber cells’ websites for instance in Delhi you can file a complaint online with the help of a Cyber cell website.

To report cybercrime, you can either file a complaint on the website or visit the police station where you’ll have to file an FIR which will be forwarded to the cyber cell later.

Case Laws:

Case 1 – Shreya Singhal vs Union of India:

In this case, two women were detained under section 66A of the Information Technology Act of 2000 for making offensive comments on Facebook regarding the appropriateness of closing Mumbai. the incident drew a lot of attention even though charges were dropped by police later. the women then filed a petition, arguing that section 66A violates freedom of expression and therefore is unconstitutional.

Issues raised

  1. Whether Section 66A of the IT Act, 2000, infringes on the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution.
  2. Whether the restrictions imposed by Section 66A are reasonable and fall within the scope of Article 19(2) of the Constitution, which allows for certain restrictions on free speech.

Judgment

The Supreme Court took down the much-debated Section 66A of the IT Act in the landmark judgment. The Court declared that the section was arbitrary in its implementation; and was vague and broadly interpreted, unreasonably infringing the freedom of speech under Article 19(2). It was a significant ruling because it protected and advocated the usefulness of free speech in the new age of technology.

Case 2- Ritu Kohli’s case

It was the first reported case of cyberstalking in India. a man named Manish Kathuria followed Kohli on the chat website, abused her using obscene language, and then distributed her telephone number to several other people. Later he used her identity to chat on other websites. In a state of shock, when Kohli registered the complaint that Kathuria was arrested under section 409 of the IPC. the IT Act was not invoked in the case, since it had not come into force at the time when the complaint was filed. While there is no record of any subsequent proceeding, this case made Indian legislators wake up to the need for legislation to address cyber-stalking. Even then, it was only in 2008 that Section 66-A was introduced[3]. 

Conclusion and Comments:

With the increasing advancements in technology issues like cyber harassment, and online hate speech are now better known by people in India. Even though a legal framework is there to tackle such issues, it still lacks in some areas, leaving the victims at risk. the Information Technology Act of 200 and some sections of IPC provide a foundation to address these issues. however, the dynamically evolving nature of cybercrimes demands continuous adaption and refinement of these laws.

The judiciary has taken the lead in interpreting and expanding the scope of laws in existence to protect individuals from online harm effectively. However, the rise of new platforms and the degree of privacy provided by the internet facilitate the complications in the issue. While the efforts made by government and civil society are worth praising, It can’t be ignored that there is a constant need to increase awareness about technological advancements, involving international cooperation. In addition to legislative and judicial measures, there should be a focus on preventive strategies. Social media platforms should be encouraged to develop and enforce more robust content moderation policies.

 

REFERENCES:

  1. Books / Commentaries / Journals Referred
  2. Stevens, F., Nurse, J. R. C., & Arief, B. (2021). Cyberstalking, cyber harassment, and adult mental health: A systematic review. Cyberpsychology, Behaviour, and Social Networking
  3. Gammon, A. R., Converse, P. D., Lee, L. M., & Griffith, R. L. (2011). A personality process model of cyber harassment. International Journal of Management and Decision-Making
  4. Van Laer, T. (2013). The means to justify the end: Combating cyber harassment in social media. SSRN Electronic Journal.
  5. Online Articles / Sources Referred
    1. https://nyaaya.org/legal-explainers/media-ip/internet/online-abuse/
    2. https://onlineharassmentfieldmanual.pen.org/
    3. https://vikaspedia.in/education/digital-litercy/information-security/being-safe-online-1/cyber-harassment
    4. https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/developmenttalk/protecting-women-and-girls-cyber-harassment-global-assessment
    5. https://cybercrime.gov.in/Webform/FAQ.aspx
  6. Cases Referred
    1. Shreya Singhal vs Union of India
  7. Statutes Referred
    1. Indian Penal Code,1860
    2. Information Technology Act,2000
    3. POCSO Act,2012

[1] United Nations, Cyber Harassment self-protection tips,https://www.unitad.un.org/.,

 

[2] The Council of Europe: Hate speech, (2014), https://www.coe.int.

 

[3] legal Service India. https://www.legalserviceindia.com/