Stress on need for law to include new cyber crimes

Corporate world conservative in reporting cyber crimes.

The online commodity exchanges of the country which are projected to grow bigger than the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) will face as big cyber crime threat as its size.

The online commodity exchanges, such as National Multi-Commodity Exchange (NMCE), Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX), National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange India (NCDEX) which are bound to deal in bigger volumes than BSE and NSE in the near future will have to continuously upgrade its softwares and security measures to match the pace with the fast evolving clans of cyber criminals.

Pavan Duggal, India's leading cyber law expert and a practicing advocate of Supreme Court, while speaking to Business Standard, said, "Online commodity exchanges are basically network service providers and they are covered under the Information Technology Act 2000. These commodity exchanges are projected to outgrow BSE and NSE. However, at the same time the threats to these online exchanges are also going to outsize their own size. The potential threat will be almost double with their growth in size."

Elaborating, he added, "If the system of one commodity exchange is hacked then it may result in loss of billions of rupees. The exchanges are expected to be robust to ensure the confidentiality of its users' information."

When asked what measures should be taken by the commodity exchanges, he said, "The online exchanges will have to give special focus to cyber security to ensure safety of data of third party information. The exchanges will have to constantly upgrade their online security facilities and their softwares to protect private details of third party and its own data."

On cyber crimes and the country's corporate world, he said the general mentality of Indian net users is very conservative where the reporting of cyber crime is concerned.

"Delhi, NOIDA, NCR and Gudgaon are the areas from where the most cases of cyber crimes are reported or registered. Mumbai comes on the second place and Karnataka is on the third place. However, I see Gujarat as a fertile place for the growth of cyber crimes. The state and its industries will have to take proactive measures to prepare themselves for this potential threat," he said.

Duggal also stressed on the need of enactment of another cyber crime law in the country to include the fast evolving criminals and their novel methods.

"The country's cyber law and its enforcement is ten steps behind the criminals. We dont have the training facility, latest technology and the softwares to tackle the fast evolving cyber criminals. The IT Act -2000 is obsolete now as it only covers six types of cyber crimes. Meanwhile, many new cyber crimes are surfacing in the country such as fishing of data, identity theft, cyber stalking and data mining."

He said the country which is evolving fast in IT sector needs a new law which covers all these new threats.

Duggal who is president of www.cyberlaws.net, internet's first ever-cyberlaw consultancy, was in Vallabh Vidyanagar to launch the Asia- Pacific's very first cyber law clinic, an online website by SGM English Medium College of Commerce & Management (SEMCOM) being run by Charutar Vidya Mandal in V V nagar.

The no profit online consultancy 'www.cyberlawclinic.org' will be maintained and updated by the students and the faculty of the institute. It is aimed to help and guide the SMEs and companies which are facing the cyber crime threats. The website was launched as a part of the SEMCOM's third biz summit organised here on January 6 and 7.