Efficacy Of The Information Technology Act, 2000 In Curbing Cyber Crimes

Dheeraj Kumar, Senior Research Fellow, Faculty of Law, Patna University.

ABSTRACT

It is rightly said that along with the social developments, scientific and technological advancements, the nature, scope, dimensions and, intensity of crime as well as mode of commission thereof also changes altogether. In order to keep pace with such developments and advancements new laws are enacted to with deal with the situation arising therefrom. One of the examples of such development is the emergence of the menace of cybercrimes in the form of consequences of technological advancements. To acknowledge such technological advancements and to keep pace therewith as well as to deal with the consequences thereof in the form of cybercrimes, the Information Technology Act, 2000 was enacted and brought into effect. More than two decades have elapsed since the enactment thereof, but the cyber offences are on the rise, therefor it is expedient to review the working of the IT Act. Against this backdrop the paper analyses the concept of cyber crimes and its new dimensions and emerging trends therein. It also discusses the relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act, 2000 which deals with the various aspects of cybercrimes in India and mechanism for controlling and curbing them. With the help of NCRB data, this paper proceeds to find out the year wise rate of variation in commission of cybercrimes and further attempts to examine the efficacy of the Information Technology Act, 2000 in order to curb the menace of cybercrime.

Keywords: cybercrime, electronic, computer, Information technology, technological advancement,