Priyanshi Srivastava
SVKM’s NMIMS School of Law, Mumbai
The pandemic of COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown has led to an increase in the number of people who spend their time online each day in addition to an obvious increase in the number of hours spent online as well. The services which people normally obtained via offline modes are now required to be obtained online i.e. we are witnessing a massive shift to internet-based services. As lockdown continued heavy dependency on online medium also increased. All private as well as the government institutions remained closed but the work continued online. The consequently arising concern is that the security of the institution is at stake as confidential data which includes trade secrets, financial information, customer information etc. can be misused with a click of a button. Not only the company’s data is at risk but personal sensitive data and financial data of an individual are also at risk when viewed from the point of cyber-attacks. Cybercrime has been a threat for many years however reasons for its increased instances during covid-19 pandemic are as follows: The increase in the use of internet population—people spending their time online—combined with a sense of confinement, anxiety and fear has led to more opportunities for cyber criminals to utilise this situation to their advantage and create more disruption. The people who are working remotely are required to be more aware of every sort of e-crime like phishing attacks, virus attacks, fake news or rumors. All these types of offences are punishable under the Information Technology Act, 2000.
Cyber Crime during Covid-19 in India—Meaning and Classification:
One of the prime locations for these cyber crimes is India. As discussed, there are various kind of cyberattacks like virus attacks which include spyware, malware, ransom etc, phishing attacks which includes the banking frauds, EMI moratorium frauds and the most popular fake news or rumours attack.
- Virus Attacks
The accessibility of social media websites, web channels, online games installations etc. has been increased. Some of the social media websites like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook etc and web channels like Netflix, Hotstar, amazon prime movies and their subscriptions have seen a tremendous increase. While using such sites people grant permission to access their personal data which is available on their phones, laptops and social media accounts. The dependency on the increased usage of the online payment methods has also opened the door for virus attacks which ultimately lead financial losses. The different viruses operate differently like spyware steals sensitive personal data and ransom virus provides unauthorised control of login details and other vital credentials of a person.
- Phishing Attacks
Phishing is defined under the Information Technology Act 2000 as “inducing individuals to give sensitive information such as passwords and bank details”. According to National crime record bureau, the crime has increased rapidly. Google has detected 149K websites which are involved in phishing from all over the world. The last two months’ reports of National Crime Record Bureau stated a rise in the member of victims by 350%. The cyber attackers target their audience in two forms either in terms of banking frauds which involves making phishing calls and asking for sensitive data like OTP, Debit or credit card details, CVV member etc, or in terms of EMI moratorium frauds which are getting popular during this lockdown, in this the cyber attackers make phishing calls to the loan holders in terms of discussing the postponement of the EMI and gain sensitive data which is further used to exploit them and cause a huge financial loss.
- Fake News
The major concern of our country is fake news or rumours. It cannot be treated normally as it a serious issue that is yet to be controlled. The kind of misleading information which spreads through social media like WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, etc often leads to severe consequences.
Some of the instances are:
- In social media, it was spread that ‘chicken is a carrier of coronavirus’ which lead to a loss of 1.6 billion rupees per day for the poultry industries.
- Rumours like 30% pension would be reduced by the government during lockdown.
- Another fake news was that the Supreme Court has advised the government to restore 4G internet within 24 hours in Jammu and Kashmir.
- There was a rumour that trains have been started which lead to a mass gathering of labourers, as there were almost 5 crore labourers who wanted to go to their hometown. That gathering resulted in furthering the spread of coronavirus.
Punishment under the IT Act, 2000:
SEC 66: Computer related offences: If any person, dishonestly or fraudulently, does any act referred to in section 43, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years or with fine which may extend to five lakh rupees or with both.
Measures to Mitigate instances of Cyber Crimes:
1. Being vigilant about phishing emails and websites.
2. Use only trusted Wi-Fi passwords.
3. Do not use the same password for multiple websites.
4. Crosscheck the news from authentic sources when you receive it.
5. Do not provide sensitive personal data like OTP, CVV, card number etc, to anyone.
6. Secure mobile phone, computer and applications by installing antivirus softwares.
7. Use chatbot on social media to verify fake news and stop the spread of rumours.
