Introduction

Due to social distancing conventions and Nation-wide lockdowns, the Covid-19 pandemic has inevitably resulted in an increase in the usage of digital technologies. With the changing times, and the “new normal”, where everything is shifting to online platforms, the number of internet fraud has increased. In fact, with every passing day it is worsening.

Internet fraud refer to an illicit scheme for making money, primarily one that involves deceiving others.[1] It mostly consists of two types: “identity theft” and “social engineering”.[2] The process of influencing individuals through deception or psychology in order to get confidential information or trick them into releasing sensitive information is known as social engineering. Identity theft is the practice of using someone else’s identifying information to obtain employment, open accounts, and purchase stuff in their name, among other things.

Some Popular Ways of Internet Fraud

Wherever there is digital data, opportunity, or desire, cybercrime and internet fraud may begin. These criminals come in many forms and sizes, from a lone user indulging in cyberbullying to state-sponsored hackers, some of the popular ways of internet fraud are listed below.

1. E-mail Phishing- A phishing email is one that is used as a tool to carry out fraudulent acts such as stealing and mishandling of personal information.
2. Social Media Fraud- Attackers on social media can steal from you in a variety of ways, like stealing your money. One popular strategy is to send you a video link with an enticing message that will lure you to click on it and you’ll be taken to a malicious website designed to infect your system with a virus.
3. Tech Support Scams- Someone calls you and claims to be from some cyber security business in this scam to persuade you.
4. Buying and Selling Fraud- Another common activity that has been tarnished by fraud is the purchase and sale of things online.
5. False Charities, Lottery, and Other Opportunities- Fraudsters also frequently contact individuals to obtain funding for a charitable reason, or even claim that you have won a lottery that you never participated in, and they have many other ways for internet scams.

Legal Provisions and Landmark Judgements

A person who commits data theft, transmits a virus into a system, hacks, destroys data, or denies access to the network to an authorized person is punishable under sections 43 and 66 of the IT Act with a maximum sentence of three years in jail or a fine of rupees five lakhs, or both. At the same time, data theft is punished under IPC Sections 378 and 424, with maximum penalties of 3 years in jail, a fine, or both; and 2 years in prison, a fine, or both. Under Section 426 of the IPC, denying access to an authorized person or causing damage to a computer system is punishable by up to three months in jail, a fine, or both.

Section 65 of the IT Act makes it illegal to tamper with computer source materials. Violations of privacy are punishable under Section 66E. It stipulates that anybody who records, publishes, or distributes an image of a person’s private region without his or her agreement has violated his or her privacy and is subject to imprisonment for up to three years or a fine of up to two lakhs, or both.

If you ever feel you are a victim to internet fraud, take some legal help! Here are some of the statutes in the Indian Legal System, like the IT Act, IPC and the Companies Act that make penal provisions for the online scam or Internet Fraud.

• : “Any person who steals, conceals, destroys, alters, or causes damage to a computer, computer system, or computer network without the permission of the owner or any other person in charge of the computer, computer system, or computer network shall be liable to pay damages as compensation to the person so affected.”[3]
• : Punishment for cheating by personation by using computer resource- “Whoever cheats by personating using any communication device or computer resource is subject to imprisonment of any sort for a duration of up to three years, as well as a fine of up to one lakh rupees.”[4]
• Section 73: Publication for fraudulent purpose. – “Anyone who intentionally generates, publishes, or otherwise makes accessible a [Electronic Signature] Certificate for any fraudulent or illicit purpose faces up to two years in jail, a fine of up to one lakh rupees, or both. Anyone who intentionally generates, publishes, or otherwise makes accessible an Electronic Signature Certificate for any fraudulent or criminal purpose faces a penalty of up to two years in jail or a fine of up to one lakh rupees, or both.”[5]

• The Indian Penal Code, 1860
• Section 405: This section deals with criminal breach of trust.—“Whoever, being in any manner entrusted with property, or with any dominion over property, dishonestly misappropriates or converts to his own use that property, or dishonestly uses or disposes of that property in violation of any direction of law prescribing the mode in which such trust is to be discharged, or of any legal contract, express or implied, which he has made touching the discharge of such trust, or wilfully suffers any other person so to do, commits criminal breach of trust.”[6]
• Section 415: The section defines Cheating, it states that — “Whoever, by deceiving any person, fraudulently or dishonestly induces the person so deceived to deliver any proper­ty to any person, or to consent that any person shall retain any property, or intentionally induces the person so deceived to do or omit to do anything which he would not do or omit if he were not so deceived, and which act or omission causes or is likely to cause damage or harm to that person in body, mind, reputation or property, is said to cheat.”[7]
• Section 420- Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property. — “Whoever cheats and thereby dishonestly induces the person de­ceived to deliver any property to any person, or to make, alter or destroy the whole or any part of a valuable security, or anything which is signed or sealed, and which is capable of being converted into a valuable security, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.”[8]

Cybercrimes such as the creation of bogus websites and cyber frauds are punished by a seven-year prison sentence and/or a fine under this provision of the IPC. This part of the IPC addresses offences involving the theft of passwords in order to perpetrate fraud or create bogus websites.

• The Companies Act, 2013
• Section 36: Punishment for fraudulently inducing persons to invest money. — “Any person who, either knowingly or recklessly makes any statement, promise or forecast which is false, deceptive or misleading, or deliberately conceals any material facts, to induce another person to enter into, or to offer to enter into, —
• any agreement for, or with a view to, acquiring, disposing of, subscribing for, or underwriting securities; or (b) any agreement, the purpose or the pretended purpose of which is to secure a profit to any of the parties from the yield of securities or by reference to fluctuations in the value of securities; or (c) any agreement for, or with a view to obtaining credit facilities from any bank or financial institution, shall be liable for action under section 447.”[9]
• Section 448- Punishment for false statement. — “Save as otherwise provided in this Act, if in any return, report, certificate, financial statement, prospectus, statement or other document required by, or for, the purposes of any of the provisions of this Act or the rules made thereunder, any person makes a statement, —
• which is false in any material particulars, knowing it to be false; or (b) which omits any material fact, knowing it to be material, he shall be liable under section 447.”[10]

There are some verdicts that are the breakthroughs in the field of cybercrime in India. When the first polymorphic virus was unleashed in 1992, it was the first cybercrime. One of the early incidents of cybercrime in India was Yahoo v. Akash Arora (1999).

[11] A permanent injunction was requested in this action against the defendant, Akash Arora, who was accused of using the trademark or domain name ‘yahooindia.com.’ Another case is Vinod Kaushik and others v. Madhvika Joshi and others (2012),[12] in which the court decided that accessing the e-mail accounts of the husband and father-in-law without their permission is unlawful under Section 43 of the IT Act, 2000.

We have discussed some of the examples of the Internet Scams and legal provisions to combat them. While you may be acquainted with several of these, it is critical to generate as much awareness as possible.

Conclusion

Fraudsters prey on the gullible, often young individuals searching for good time or quick earnings. Younger folks are the most vulnerable to Internet frauds because they are more inclined to assume something is authentic when they see it on the internet and are less likely to know how to spot fraudulent sites. They reap the benefits of this by building appealing websites that appear to be legitimate providers.

As the number of frauds grows, it is critical to be alert and watchful. To protect ourselves from internet scams, we should practice some fundamental precautions, such as not disclosing our personal information on any social networking platform. We should maintain two-factor verification on all Accounts. Before clicking on any dubious links or attachments, we should exercise caution and double-check the legitimacy of any website before purchasing or visiting.

Education ourselves and the people around us about these internet scams is one of the best ways to prevent these frauds. As more individuals become aware of these scams, they will become less effective and, eventually, will disappear entirely!