What is cyber-harassment?

Cyber-harassment, or cyber-bullying, can include things like:

• Checking your email without permission
• Impersonating you or hacking into your online accounts
• Spreading rumours about you, or
• Sharing photos or videos of you without your consent.

Cyber-harassment is not just about being teased – it’s repeated behaviour that is designed to humiliate, control or scare the person being targeted. It’s not legal, and it’s not OK.

What is cyber-stalking?

If someone keeps contacting you on Facebook or any kind of online site and it’s making you scared and upset, it sounds like you’re being stalked. Stalking is illegal. The person could get dangerous.

Stalking includes following someone around or leaving messages on their phone or online, and deliberately trying to make them feel scared. You should contact the police and get their advice. Save any messages or emails to show the police if necessary. Stalking can also involve threats or sexual comments. The stalker often tries to make the person they’re stalking feel intimidated and scared. Stalking a girlfriend, boyfriend or ex, or someone else is against the law in Victoria. Stalking someone online is also against the law.

Punishment for cyberstalking and online harassment under the Indian Penal Code

• Section 354 D of the Indian Penal Code which was added by the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2013 specifically proscribes the act of stalking as Whoever follows a person and contacts, or attempts to contact such person to foster personal interaction repeatedly, despite a clear indication of disinterest by such person, or whoever, monitors the use by a person of the Internet, email or any other form of electronic communication, or watches or spies on a person in a manner that results in a fear of violence or serious alarm or distress in the mind of such person, or interferes with the mental peace of such person, commits the offence of stalking.
• The victim can also additionally file a case of defamation (Section 499, IPC) against the offender. The section has bailed out those acts of stalking which are performed for the purpose of preventing and detecting crime by a person who has been entrusted with such responsibility by the state. Also, instances where pursuing such conduct was reasonable or where the person was authorised under any act cannot allude to the offence of stalking.
• Section 354A of IPC punishes offence of sexual harassment with 3 years of imprisonment and/or fine.
• Section 354C criminalises the offence of Voyeurism. It is defined as the act of capturing the image of a woman engaging in a private act, and/or disseminating said image, without her consent. The section prescribes 3 years of imprisonment for the first conviction and 7 years of imprisonment on second conviction along with fine.
• Section 503 punishes criminal intimidation as threats made to any person with injury to her reputation, either in order to cause alarm to her, or to make her change her course of action regarding anything she would otherwise do/not do. The offences under S. 499 and S. 503 are punishable with imprisonment which may extend to two years, and/or fine.
• Section 509 of IPC comes to your rescue if someone is constantly bugging you with derogatory verbal abuse because of your gender. The section provides that any person who utters any word or makes any sound or gesture, intending that such word, sound or gesture be heard or seen by a woman and insult her modesty, shall be punished with one-year imprisonment and/or fine.
• Section 507 punishes criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication with a term which may extend to two years of imprisonment. Vengeful posting of images or videos of rape victims is punishable with imprisonment which may extend to two years and fine under section 228a of IPC.

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.

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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