Date:27/08/2004 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2004/08/27/stories/2004082702471900.htm

Back Stricter enforcement needed to tackle cyber crimes

Our Bureau

Mr Vijay Mukhi (left), Chairman, e Securities Initiative AIAI, Mr P.K. Jain, Joint Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, and Mr Amar Deb, Creative Director, Channel V India Ltd, at a discussion on `Pornography on the Internet & other cyber crimes' held in Mumbai on Thursday. - Shashi Ashiwal

Mumbai , Aug. 26

THE Internet while making education fun has also opened a pornographic pandora's box. For instance an innocuous search for the `White House' on the Internet will open 1,140,000 links of pages.

One of this leads to a pornographic site that proudly claims to have over 85,000 visitors till date. Internet pornography is big business today and only stringent law enforcement will curtail this, concurred panelists at a discussion on `Pornography on the Internet & Other Cyber Crimes,' organised by the Mumbai Police and the All India Association of Industries here today. Internet monitoring tools such as Net Nanny, Iambigbrother and Safetysurf.com help parents to prevent their children from accessing unwanted sites.

However according to Mr Vijay Mukhi, Chairman, e.Securities Initiative, AIAI & Nasscom (West), these tools are not enough. "Here are other sites which inform the user (the child in this case) about circumventing Internet monitoring software. And who decides what is pornography?" questioned Mr Mukhi.

Besides pornography, cyber stalking, e-mail hoaxes such as the Nigerian 419 scam letters, spam mail, hacking and viruses are just a few of the cyber crimes that are being perpetuated through the Internet. Due to legislations being country-specific there is a need to frame a global legislation that governs cyber crime given the (global) nature of the Internet, Mr Mukhi said.

While the Indian Information Technology Act 2000 has legislations that tackle hacking and pornography, enforcing these laws will make a difference, opined the panelists.

Mr Amar Deb, Creative Director, Channel V India, urged the print and electronic media to take more responsibility and streamline content. At the end of the day it is good old-fashioned parenting that will help to prevent cyber crime against children and stricter law enforcement would prevent Internet crime, panelists said.