International Journal of Science, Engineering and TechnologyAuthors: Vithalanai Nirav Prakashbhai
Abstract: The rapid expansion of information and communication technologies has fundamentally transformed the manner in which individuals, businesses, governmental institutions and societies communicate, transact and store information. Alongside the benefits of digitalisation, cyberspace has become an increasingly significant environment for criminal activities such as identity theft, phishing, online financial fraud, cyber stalking, ransomware, data breaches, cyber extortion, online impersonation, cyber terrorism, deepfakes and AI-enabled crimes. The borderless and technologically dynamic nature of cybercrime creates significant challenges for conventional criminal law, investigation, evidence collection and prosecution. India has developed a multi-layered legal and institutional framework to address these challenges. The Information Technology Act, 2000 remains the principal legislation dealing specifically with cyber offences and electronic transactions. However, the legal framework has expanded through the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023. The latter three criminal-law enactments came into force from 1 July 2024, creating a new legal environment for substantive offences, criminal procedure and electronic evidence. The present research critically analyses the adequacy of India's existing cyber-crime framework in dealing with emerging forms of cyber offending. intermediary responsibility and institutional coordination. The paper argues that the principal challenge is no longer merely the absence of cyber-crime provisions, but the fragmentation, technological obsolescence, investigative capacity gap and coordination gap within the existing framework. The paper therefore proposes legislative harmonisation, specialised cyber courts, stronger digital-forensic infrastructure, standardised electronic-evidence protocols, enhanced international cooperation, AI-specific safeguards, victim-centric financial-fraud mechanisms and continuous legal reform.
