Cybercrime can be defined as the crime where there is use of a computer as an instrument for committing fraud, trafficking in child pornography, intellectual property, stealing identities or violating privacy.

In short, cybercrime is any type of illegal activity that takes place via digital means, the most common type of cybercrime is data theft, but it also includes a wide range of malicious activity, such as cyberbullying or planting worms or viruses.

Cyberbullying is illegal when it constitutes a threat to a person’s safety, involves coercion or discrimination or bias against certain population, spreading hatred. In all these cases the damage is not financial, but it is still the crime.

Types of Cybercrime:

1. Hacking- It is an attempt to exploit a computer system or a private network inside a computer. In simple language it means the unauthorised access or control over computer someone network security systems for some illegal purpose.
    
2. Phishing- Phishing, It is a practice where a person having fraudulent intent of sending emails creating fake web pages to be from a known companies or a reputable company in order to induce individual to get some personal information or some password, such as credit cards, etc.
    
3. Identity theft- The fraudulent practice of using another person’s personal information in order to obtain credit, loans, etc.

Cybercrime is not defined anywhere neither in Information Technology Act,2000 nor in the IT Amendment Act,2008 , nor in any other legislation in India.

Most of the cybercrime are listed under the IT Act,2008.
However we realize that the IT Act is not the only enactment covering cybercrime. The Indian Penal Code could also be used to prosecute against cyber crimes or to the supplement provisions of the IT Act.

For instance, Offences like hacking, data theft , virus attack could be prosecuted under Section 66 read with Section 43 of the IT Act, and for cases like forging a credit or debit card or fraudulent intent to cause wrongful loss or gain could be prosecuted under Section 463 to Section 471, IPC.

IT Act,2008 also protect us against identity theft (Section 66C) or cheating by misrepresenting online (Section 66D). Victims of porn may register complaints for violation of their privacy under (Section 66E) as also under Section 67 and Section 67A IT Act in addition to IPC provisions.
Section 67A and Section 67B also provide for prosecution of pornography and child pornography.

In today’s generation, the children are armed not with guns and weapons but with the cameras and internet on their mobile phone. There is rise in revenge porn attacks by children against the children. It is Irrespective of the age of the accused, if the offence of circulating sexually content or violating privacy through images or videos of private parts, is committed, the person is susceptible to prosecution.

If we compare are Indian Laws in cybercrime with any other country, our country does not have strict laws for cybercrime. For example, In India Child Pornography punishment under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 is of five years imprisonment in first conviction and we compare same with the USA law, the minimum statutory punishment for producing child pornography in first conviction is 15 to 30 years in prison.

Are Indian Laws strict enough to put a hacker behind bars for a life sentence?

The answer is BIG NO.
Cyber crimes under Information Technology Act,2000 which are from hacking to cyber terrorism. In this Act only the Cyber Terrorism is punishable with life imprisonment, and rest all of them are punishable with imprisonment of three years while some other are punishable with imprisonment for seven years.

But if there is a mere hacking it shall not involve imprisonment unless it includes phishing, money laundering , email frauds, etc.

There is no provision in Indian law that will imprison a person for life for a crime of hacking.

India needs to amend their cyber laws more in a strict manner, because of India’s cyberlaws there is a growth of scammers, phishing, money laundering, etc.
As everyone is aware that India does not have strict laws.

Conviction in India in cases of cyber crime is very low, according to the 2016 information from home ministry data. As we all know it is very difficult to calculate exact conviction rates for 2015, 11592 cases have been registered across the country—a rise of 20% from the previous year.

In 2015, chargesheets were filed in 3206 while there was only conviction in 234 cases, In 2014 there were 9622 cases registered and they only secure 76 convictions.

The officials reported that most of the government officials does not aware of their adjudicating powers under Information Technology Act,2008. Many of the government officials (IT secretaries) does not exercise their quasi-judicial power they possess.

There is very lack of standard procedure for seizing and analysing of digital evidence and not a standard procedure for examination of digital evidence.