IT Act likely to take sting off operations

This may mean an end to sting operations. To make privacy-related laws more stringent through the Information Technology Act, the government seeks to treat circulating or taking still pictures or videos of persons without permission as a punishable offence.

However, proposed amendments to the IT Act do not see network service providers, like websites and auction sites, guilty of hosting such content. Publications or TV channels carrying such material, on the other hand, will be liable for punishment.

The government had proposed to introduce a "right to privacy" clause in Section 72 of the Act, under which violation of privacy would mean a fine of Rs 25 lakh and an imprisonment of one year, said an official in the ministry of communications and information technology.

Financial transactions like purchase and sale of visual images will entail imprisonment of two years for all those who circulate the content.

The move comes after the arrest of Avnish Bajaj, chief executive, baazee.com, for hosting "objectionable" content on his website. Cyber law experts say such a move will not address privacy issues and that hosting objectionable content is as much an invasion of privacy as circulating it.

"The government has excluded the network service providers from the liability to protect the e-commerce industry. But the move is unjustified," said a member of the drafting committee of the proposed amendments.

Under the proposed rules, no action will be taken till a complaint is registered by the person whose images are captured. "The law inherently contradicts itself. To protect privacy, it requires the person to reveal his or her identity," said a noted lawyer of cyber crimes.

The communications and IT ministry proposes to introduce amendments to the IT Act during the ensuing winter session of Parliament.

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No more tehelka

Proposed amendments to the IT Act will punish publications but network service providers, like websites and auction sites, will not be guilty of hosting such content

Under "Right to privacy" clause, violation of privacy will mean a fine of Rs 25 lakh and an imprisonment of one year

Financial transactions like purchase and sale of visual images will entail imprisonment of two years for those who circulate the content

Sting operations undertaken by news channels will also be seen as violating the privacy of the person who is shot on camera