Landing : Athabascau University

WEEK 7 - Cybercrime Laws for Canada & India

Cybercrime is considered a criminal offence where a computer is used for activities such as hacking, phishing, scamming, or to commit offences such as child pornography, hate crimes, computer fraud, etc.  Criminals may also use computers for illegally obtaining access to unauthorized electronic communication, document and storage information.

Cyber-Crime Law in Canada

On March 10, 2015, the Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act was established, which enforces legislation providing law enforcement agencies with powers to take action against the exploitation of children and organized crime via the internet.  This act facilitated the amendment of the following legislations ("Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act (S.C. 2014, c. 31)"):

  • The Criminal Code

  • The Canadian Evidence Act

  • The Competition Act

  • The Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act.

The Criminal Code Amended to include:

  1. a new offence of non-consensual distribution of intimate images as well as complementary amendments to authorize the removal of such images from the Internet and the recovery of expenses incurred to obtain the removal of such images, the forfeiture of property used in the commission of the offence, a recognizance order to be issued to prevent the distribution of such images and the restriction of the use of a computer or the Internet by a convicted offender;

     

  2.  the power to make preservation demands and orders to compel the preservation of electronic evidence;

     

  3. new production orders to compel the production of data relating to the transmission of communications and the location of transactions, individuals or things;

     

  4. a warrant that will extend the current investigative power for data associated with telephones to transmission data relating to all means of telecommunications;

     

  5. warrants that will enable the tracking of transactions, individuals and things and that are subject to legal thresholds appropriate to the interests at stake; and

     

  6. a streamlined process of obtaining warrants and orders related to an authorization to intercept private communications by ensuring that those warrants and orders can be issued by a judge who issues the authorization and by specifying that all documents relating to a request for a related warrant or order are automatically subject to the same rules respecting confidentiality as the request for authorization.

The Canadian Evidence Act Amended to include:

  1. The use of a competent spouse as a compellable witness for the prosecution with respect to the new offence of non-consensual distribution of intimate images online.

The Competition Act Amended to include:

  1. The preservation of computer data and orders for the production of documents relating to the transmission of communication or financial data. This also relates to electronic evidence and allows for better enforcement of the law for such crimes.

The Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act

This act was amended to allow for the same powers that were added to the Criminal Code be available to the Canadian authorities to execute incoming requests for assistance and allow the commissioner or Competition to execute search warrants under the act.

 

Cybercrime Laws in India

According to India’s Information Technology Act, 2000, any individual obtaining unauthorized access to computer systems/network is liable to pay damages via compensation not exceeding the crore rupees to the affected individual or cooperation.  Breach of access includes the follow ("Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications & Information Technology"(2013)):

  1. Accesses or secures access to computer, computer system or computer network;

  2. downloads, copies or extracts any data, computer database or information from such computer, computer system or computer network including information or data held or stored in any removable storage medium;

  3. introduces or causes to be introduced any computer contaminant or computer virus into any computer, computer system or computer network;

  4. damages or causes to be damaged any computer, computer system or computer network, data, computer data base or any other programmes residing in such computer, computer system or computer network;

  5. disrupts or causes disruption of any computer, computer system or computer network;

  6. denies or causes the denial of access to any person authorized to access any computer, computer system or computer network by any means;

  7. provides any assistance to any person to facilitate access to a computer, computer system or computer network in contravention of the provisions of this Act, rules or regulations made thereunder;

  8. Charges the services availed of by a person to the account of another person by tampering with or manipulating any computer, computer system, or computer network.

The Act also covers offences such as tampering with computer source documents or hacking into computer systems, punishable for up to three years imprisonment or a fine extending up to two lakh rupee, or both.  Publishing obscene information in electronic form on the first conviction faces five years imprisonment and a fine of one lakh rupees and in the event the same individual is convicted for a second time, they face a ten year imprisonment and two lakh rupees.

Comments

Looking at Canada’s laws on Cybercrime and those of India, there is a definite gap when it comes to ensuring cyber security and the penalties if convicted of a cybercrime.  Within Canada the “Protecting Canadians from online crime Act” facilitated the amendment of existing Acts such as the Criminal Code, The Canadian Evidence Act, The competition Act and The Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Act, which now applies to electronic/on-line content.

 

Reference

Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications & Information Technology. (2013, May 23). Retrieved from http://www.dot.gov.in/act-rules/information-technology-act-2000

The Indian Cyber law requires compliance by companies / corporations Doing Business in India. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2015, from http://www.madaan.com/cyberlaw.html

Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act (S.C. 2014, c. 31). (2015, October 22). Retrieved from http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/annualstatutes/2014_31/page-1.html#docCont