The Information Technology Act provides that notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, any police officer, not below the rank of a Deputy Superintendent of Police, or any other officer of the Central Government or a State Government authorised by the Central Government in this behalf may enter any public place and search and arrest without warrant any person found therein who is reasonably suspected or having committed or of committing or of being about to commit any offence under this Act. (Section 80)

Cybercrimes do not have a jurisdiction as these crimes committed without any barrier of boundaries. So, you can report a cyber crime to the cybercrime units of any city irrespective of the place where it was committed.

• Cyber Cells: Cyber Cells have been established to provide redressal to the victims of cybercrime. These cells function as a part of the criminal investigation department and specifically deal with internet related criminal activity. If you do not a cyber cell at your place of residence, then you can file an F.I.R in a local police station. You can also approach the commissioner or the judicial magistrate of your city, if by any reason you are unable to file an F.I.R. Any police station is bound to register an F.I.R., irrespective of its jurisdiction.
• Online Grievance Redressal: Police is the most notorious law enforcement agency in India when it comes to dealing with women victims. Even when women have easy access to a police station, they hesitate in reporting the incident to them, under the fear of being harassed and being made to suffer additional ordeal. As a result, such crimes committed against women remain swept under the rug and women continue to bear the brunt of harassment. So, women who do not want to come out in the open can file a complaint against stalking at the National Commission for Women. The Commission takes up the matter with the police and expedites the investigation. In cases of serious offences, the commission can set up an inquiry committee to probe into the matter and conduct spot inquiry, collect evidence, and examine witnesses, summon accused and police records, etc to further the investigation.
• Report to the websites: Most of the social media websites where users make their accounts provide a reporting mechanism. These websites are obliged under the IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2011 to act within 36 hours to disable information related to offending content. The intermediary shall have to preserve such information and associated records for at least ninety days for investigation purposes. The affected person can bring to the knowledge of the intermediary, any offending content which is hosted, stored, or published on his computer system, in writing or through email signed with electronic signature.
• Report to CERT: The Information Technology Amendment Act 2008 has designated the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) as the national nodal agency for tackling the issues occurring in tow with computer security threats. They issue guidelines on the procedure, prevention, reporting, and response to cyber incidents, among other functions.

DOs and DON’Ts:

• As cyber crimes are committed in a virtual world, it becomes difficult to collect evidence against the offender. So, do not immediately delete the photos, mails, or any other information sent by the stalker as this can help the investigators to trace the trail of his online activities and track him.
• Cyberstalkers can easily hide evidence of their online activity, so preserving his evidence via printouts or screenshots can come very handy.
• Report the incident to the website in question.
• File a First Information Report to enable commencement of the investigation of the cyber crime.

Aishwarya Says:

I have always been against Glorifying Over Work and therefore, in the year 2021, I have decided to launch this campaign “Balancing Life”and talk about this wrong practice, that we have been following since last few years. I will be talking to and interviewing around 1 lakh people in the coming 2021 and publish their interview regarding their opinion on glamourising Over Work.

If you are interested in participating in the same, do let me know.

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The copyright of this Article belongs exclusively to Ms. Aishwarya Sandeep. Reproduction of the same, without permission will amount to Copyright Infringement. Appropriate Legal Action under the Indian Laws will be taken.

If you would also like to contribute to my website, then do share your articles or poems at adv.aishwaryasandeep@gmail.com

We also have a Facebook Group Restarter Moms for Mothers or Women who would like to rejoin their careers post a career break or women who are enterpreneurs.

We are also running a series Inspirational Women from January 2021 to March 31,2021, featuring around 1000 stories about Indian Women, who changed the world. #choosetochallenge