Cyberspace PDF

CYBERSPACE INTRODUCTION Two decades ago, the term cyberspace seemed right out of a science fiction movie. In the second decade of the twenty-first century, cyberspace is probably the place where most of us spend a major part of our lives. It has become an inseparable element of our existence. We...

CYBERSPACE INTRODUCTION Two decades ago, the term cyberspace seemed right out of a science fiction movie. In the second decade of the twenty-first century, cyberspace is probably the place where most of us spend a major part of our lives. It has become an inseparable element of our existence. We have all seen that technology is a great leveler. Using technology, we created machine-clones – computers, which are high-speed data processing devices. They can also manipulate electrical, magnetic, and optical impulses to perform complex arithmetic, memory, and logical functions. The power of one computer is the power of all connected computers termed as a network-of-network or the internet. Cyberspace is the dynamic and virtual space that such networks of machine-clones create. In other words, cyberspace is the web of consumer electronics, computers, and communications network which interconnect the world. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Cyberspace is such a term, which is not yet completely defined and also has no geographical limitation. It is a term associated with application of the Internet worldwide. It is also called as a virtual space as physical existence of cyberspace is not detectable at all. Cyberspace is “the total interconnectedness of human beings through computers and telecommunication without regard to physical geography. Cyberspace is a term coined by science fiction author William Gibson to describe the whole range of information resources available through computer networks. For our purposes, cyberspace is a realm in which communication and interaction between two individuals or between an individual and a computer is facilitated by digital data exchanged over computer networks. This interaction or communication can be used for a host of different purposes. The Internet is currently the biggest network for linking computers, but cyberspace, as a concept, is independent of the Internet. Cyberspace communication began before the Internet and the World Wide Web, and cyberspace interaction and communication will continue to take place after the Internet is no longer the network of choice. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Cyberspace. This word has stormed into our language and invaded our collective consciousness like no other. As the technology improves and ownership of home computers increases, we competently navigate our way around cyberspace, downloading information, reading and writing to newsgroups, and receiving and sending emails. Cyberspace represents the new medium of communication, electronic communication, which is fast outmoding, or even replacing, more traditional methods of communication. We often send emails in place of paper letters, we leave electronic messages on bulletin boards rather than pinning slips of card to wooden notice boards, and more and more frequently we are able to read texts on-line—in e- journals, for instance—rather than on good old-fashioned wood pulp. The physical objects of traditional communication (letters, books and so on) are being superseded by new electronic objects. And, just as physical objects exist in physical space, so these cyber objects exist in cyberspace. ARE SPACE AND CYBERSPACE EQUIVALENT? The notion of physical space saturates our ordinary everyday lives. It is a basic concept which underlies our understanding of the world around us, the entities within it and our own and other people’s movements through it. And, to enlarge on this understanding, we often ask questions like: Where is the nearest post office? How much further to the pub? Will this gift fit in that box? How do I get from here to the nearest supermarket? These kinds of questions express different facets of our common conception of space. I suggest that we can isolate at least four facets, or sub-concepts, which go towards making up our macro-concept of physical space. These are:  Place  Distance  Size  Route The sub-concept of place involves us in asking "where-type" questions. We want to know where things are situated in relation to ourselves and to other things so that we can find them, avoid them or include them in our mental map of an area. With the sub-concept of distance, we ask "how far-type" questions. How far something is from something else becomes important when we want to make a journey—should we go by foot or in the car; should we allow ten minutes or half an hour to get there? Size concentrates on "how big-type" questions. These involve dimensions—how much fits into my backpack becomes important when packing for a trip abroad. And with route, we ask "navigation-type" questions. To successfully arrive in London from Edinburgh, we need to know which roads connect the two cities and how—does the west coast or the east coast road provide the most direct route? Cyberspace is also a concept which underlies our understanding— this time of the world of electronic communication, the entities which populate it and our movements through it. We need only cast a glance at the terms which have entered into modern parlance to convince ourselves that we treat cyberspace as an essentially spatial medium (as the word itself suggests), and so on a par with physical space. We visit websites, we zoom along the information superhighway, we enter chat rooms when participating in IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and Microsoft advertising executives try to reel us in with the slogan "Where do you want to go today?" ™ Cyberspace, like physical space, comprises (at least) the four sub-concepts: place, distance, size and route. And the formula remains the same as for physical space. Place prompts us to ask "where-type" questions. On which server is a particular website located? To which email address should we send our message? And the chat room of IRC represents a cyber place. Such ways of speaking reflect the importance of locating specific targets in cyberspace. Distance has us asking "how far-type" questions. How many transmissions between how many different computers will it take for information to reach the desired destination? In this way we can calculate how long it might take for a corporate website or a personal homepage to reach our screens—calculations which become important for people with dial-up connections from home, where time really is money. With size we ask "how big-type" questions. We might wonder how extensive a website is, meaning how much information it contains and how many links to other sites it includes. Size is also a relevant factor for ftp (FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL) – how large a file is will (partially) determine how long it takes to download from the host computer to your own. And finally, route involves "navigation-type" issues. My email lands up in someone else’s mailbox by following a specified route or set of connections, while Web browsers enable us to reach out from our own computers and explore the electronic universe, as we follow links, moving from site to site. It appears, then, that space and cyberspace can count as roughly equivalent conceptual entities, at least in the sense of sharing the four common sub-concepts of place, distance, size and route. HISTORY OF CYBERSPACE In 1984, Wiliam Gibson published his science fiction book – Necromancer, which describes an online world of computers and elements of the society who use these computers. The word cyberspace first appeared in this book. In the book, a hacker of databases stole data for a fee. The author portrayed cyberspace as a three- dimensional virtual landscape. Also, a network of computers creates this space. According to him, cyberspace looked like a physical space but was actually a computer generated construction. Also, it represented abstract data. The book caught the imagination of many writers and in 1986, major English language dictionaries introduced the word ‘cyberspace’. According to the New Oxford Dictionary of English, ‘CyberSpace’ is the notional environment in which people communicate over computer networks. Since cyberspace is a virtual space, it has no boundaries, mass, or gravity. It simply represents the interconnected space between computers, systems, and other networks. It exists in the form of bits and bytes – zeroes and ones (0’s and 1’s). In fact, the entire cyberspace is a dynamic environment of 0’s and 1’s which changes every second. These are simply electronic impulses. Also, it is an imaginary location where the words of two parties meet in conversation. CYBERSPACE VS. PHYSICAL WORLD Firstly, cyberspace is a digital medium and not a physical space. It is an interactive world and is not a copy of the physical world. Here are some differences between cyberspace and the physical world: Physical World  Static, well-defined, and incremental  Has fixed contours Cyberspace  Dynamic, undefined, and exponential  Is as vast as the human imagination and has no fixed shape In a human brain, there are countless neurons which create a spectre of life. Similarly, the cyberspace represents millions of computers creating a spectre of digital life. Therefore, cyberspace is a natural extension of the physical world into an infinite world. DIMENSIONS OF CYBERSPACE Today we are in the 21st century and things are changing for India. With the rapid growth of trade and industry in the era of globalization, liberalization, increasing use of internet, e-commerce and convergence of technologies have opened new vistas of opportunities for the people of India. The information and communication revolution is taking place all over the world and it has left the common man bewildered to even comprehend what is happening. The social, economic, political, cultural and educational system is undergoing changes on an unprecedented scale. It is making the life of an ordinary man difficult as he is unable to keep pace with the changing time and especially with regard to matters pertaining to knowledge sector. Today technology is evolving fast as result of which the computers have found place in every home, every office and in all important departments. With the touch of a finger the whole world of knowledge, information is available just like magical lamp of Allauddin where an individual would get any information which one desires. A person living in India can communicate with a person in U.S.A. or Australia thousands of miles away. This is done in Cyberspace. The advancement of science and technology has made a tremendous impact and change almost in all walks of life. The paper highlights the impact of information technology on library science. The libraries are considered to be storehouse of knowledge and information which is acquired with the help of books. But now with the help of virtual world the scenario has changed. With the easy accessibility to information and knowledge the students of library science will have to equip themselves with information technology and they will be required to learn the cyber language. They will also have to be acquainted with the computer security system. As potential users of information technology it will be imperative for library science professional to prepare themselves to handle the new and exciting world of cyberspace. Cyberspace is a world of virtual reality. It has netizens and not citizens. Cyber world is not like physical world. The laws of physical world are different and they cannot be applied to Cyberspace. Physical laws have limitations and are defined. But laws of Cyber space are dynamic, undefined and limitless and they have to keep pace with technological advancements. Cyberspace is a space where entry is not bound by geographical boundaries. Today a person sitting in the Chennai can access the information through Internet anywhere in the world. In the light of this librarians and information scientist should know about:--  The right to information and right to freedom of speech and expression,  Crimes related to internet, and  Intellectual property rights. The Indian people are governed by the Constitution of India which gives the fundamental rights to the people. The Constitution of India does not specifically guarantee the right to information, but since long it has been recognized by our Supreme Court as fundamental right necessary for democratic functioning of our country. Our Supreme Court has specifically recognized the right to information as an integral part of the right to freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19(1) (a) of constitution and it can also be read within the purview of Article 21. The right to information is not an absolute right some information can be held back where giving of the information would harm the interests which need to be protected. Article 19(1) (a) gives the right of freedom of speech and expression including the freedom of press to the citizens of India and the same article 19 sub clause (2) gives the reasonable restrictions which can be imposed by the government on the grounds of sovereignty and integrity of India, security of state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence. But today the information which is available on the internet, the access is unlimited and person is free to get the information which under the law is prohibited. To give an example the viewing of pornographic and obscene material or any matter which affect the unity and integrity of the nation can be accessed by the people easily. The question to be answered here is what happens to the reasonable restrictions given in article 19(2)? What control does the government have to restrict the right to information? These are questions which will have to be considered and determined by the government as well as the people of India while making laws for cyber space. The advent of technology has brought with it unknown dangers and threats and in the hands of unscrupulous people it could mean a weapon mightier than any other weapon known to mankind so far. Internet crimes can be committed with considerable ease against anyone in the world from any part of the world and even from within the comfort of ones home. There is likelihood for more crimes to be committed in future in India. Anonymity makes Internet a preferred weapon of choice for committing crimes. Technological perfection makes it very easy for these crimes to be committed. India has adopted a legislation to facilitate and safeguard electronic transactions and computer related crimes and it is the Information Technology Act 2000 which is applicable to the users of technology. This law is based on the Model Law on Electronic Commerce prepared by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 30th January 1997. The aims and objectives of the Act include enabling or facilitating the use of electronic commerce and providing equal treatments to users of paper-based documentation and to users of computer-based information. It is to promote efficient delivery of government services by means of reliable electronic records. It also covers some computer related crimes and contravention which are as follows:  tempering with computer source documents (section 65 which provides for punishment with imprisonment upto 3 years and fine extend upto 2 lakh)  Hacking with computer system (section 66 under which punishment is imprisonment upto 3 years, fine which extend upto Rs. 2 lakh)  Publishing of information which is obscene in electronic form (section 67 which provides for punishment of imprisonment {first conviction- which extend upto five years, fine extend upto Rs. 1 lakh}, {imprisonment second or subsequent conviction extend upto 10 years, fine extend upto Rs 2 lakh}.   Securing access to protected system notified by the government (section 70 punishment of imprisonment extend upto 10 years, and fine but it is silent about the fine which is to be imposed.  Breach of confidentiality and privacy by disclosing any electronic information to any other person without consent of the concerned person (section 72 which provides punishment of imprisonment upto 2 years, fine upto 1 lakh.) In addition to the crimes given above there are few more crimes which are given below:-  Unauthorized reproduction  Software piracy  Miscellaneous computer crimes  Theft of data and information The next important aspect to be considered here is the issue of intellectual property rights. An intellectual property right is a general term which covers copyright, patents, registered designs. The intellectual property rights provide an incentive for the creation of an investment of a new work (literary work, music, film, print media, software performances etc.) and their exploitation. Copyright protects original work of authorship that is in tangible (definite) form of expression. The work coming under the purview of copyright includes the following categories:  Literary works.  Musical works.  Dramatic works  Choreographic works  Pictorial, graphic, sculptural works  Motion picture and other audiovisual works  Sound recording and architectural works The main objective of the copyright law is to promote the access and the use of information and for protecting the works from the infringement and for encouraging the author in pursuit of knowledge. The technological developments, the increasing number of electronic publication and digital libraries pose challenge to the right holder as well as law enforcing agencies. Section 14 of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957 enumerates certain activities which are exclusive rights for the author of the work who can do or authorize someone to do all or a part of those activities. These, when done by unauthorized person or without the explicit permission of the copyright holders, amounts to a breach or infringement of copyright. These include:-  To reproduce the work in any material form including the storing of it in any medium by electronic means  To perform the work in or communicate to public  To issue the copies of (publish) the work to public not being in circulation.  To produce and publish any translation of the work  To make any translation or adaptation of the work.  To make any cinematography film, or a sound recording and   To do in relation to a translation or adaptation of the work any of the above specified acts. In the case of computer programmes in addition to what is given above the Act also mean to do or authorize.  To sell or give on hire or offer for sale or hire any copy of the computer program regardless of whether such copy has been sold or given on hire on earlier occasions. Technology is boon for mankind and new developments are taking place everyday. Computer is at the core of information technology activities. These activities are no doubt is regulated by law but the prevailing laws are not sufficient to control the unscrupulous activities. If this technology is used for negative things in life it can prove to be disastrous and if it is used for enriching ones personality, for getting information and for gaining knowledge it will benefit the humanity. REGULATION OF CYBERSPACE There is no doubt that cyberspace has brought about profound changes in the way citizens, organizations and states relate to each other. The capillarity of Internet, along with its large geographical coverage in terms of access and the advent of the personal computer, gave rise to the globalization of information and knowledge, creating new spaces for interactivity, sharing and storage of market products, among which we highlight the leisure and culture immersive virtual environments (virtual worlds), the product of information technology- mediated social interactions (social networks), or the place where information is stored and processed (cloud). This diversity of spaces representing the wealth of cyberspace applications is the basis of its success and of the rapid growth of its use. This group of spaces is based on the global communications system – the Internet – to which information systems and personal electronic devices connect to perform their function. If not originally created for military purposes but certainly developed to be used with that objective, the Internet penetrated the academic network in the late 1980s and quickly took over as a means of mass communication in the mid-1990s. In its military origin, the main concern in the Internet’s design was resilience to partial failures, resulting in a fully distributed physical architecture and management without any connection with the administrative map of nations. Soon cyberspace was perceived as a space of freedom, a kind of new global Far West where no state could enforce the law and maintain order. In this context, two opposing academic trends emerged. The first suggests the failure of the legal system to deal with cyberspace and advocates the creation of new forms of regulation adapted to its specificities. The second supports a treatment of nonexceptionality regarding cyberspace and argues that the challenges in its regulation are no different from those posed by other areas where there are cross- border transactions. This article intends to present and discuss these two currents in the light of developments since their initial formulation, and ascertain whether there is a trend or primacy in the use of cyberspace regulatory mechanisms. Characteristics of cyberspace Some characteristics of cyberspace architecture pose serious challenges to the governance of this new medium, as well as to the regulation of the various activities conducted within in. To begin with, cyberspace dramatically increases the speed and amount of communications, while reducing or eliminating the gap between institutions, between individuals or between nations. Emails or SMS are sent and received almost instantly, photographs, videos and opinion articles are shared and disseminated globally in near real time, buying a book over the Internet is now as easy and convenient as to do it in a bookstore. In this context, cyberspace and the conversion from analog to digital brutally increased the frequency and the speed of some existing unlawful behaviour. Examples include copyright infringement, which has always existed but that digital technologies have facilitated and carried to the extreme. On the other hand, cyberspace is non-territorial. Unlike natural areas (air, sea, land, and space) where states, within their capabilities, exercise sovereignty and enforce the law within a relatively well defined physical territory, in cyberspace that exercise raises demarcation problems. In the same vein, B. Posen refers to it as another global common, comparing it to the sea, air and outer space. Therefore, classical concepts such as "jurisdiction" or "property" - to give just a few examples - become fuzzy when applied to cyberspace. The provision of online services will hardly ever comply with the legal framework of all the states where they are available, creating difficulties in their exercise of sovereignty, starting with the very choice of which applicable law to apply - the law where the service is provided, or the law where the effects are produced? Finally, this virtual space ensures some degree of anonymity to those using it, which again raises difficulties regarding the allocation of acts performed or the identity of the authors. A Portuguese cybernaut or located in Portuguese territory may use a blog service in the US to slander another Portuguese citizen. This same Internet user can play an online game allowed in the country where the server is located but which is banned in Portugal. He may also remotely practice a profession regulated in Portugal, but which is not regulated in the country where the service is provided. Cyberspace has also brought about a set of new legal protection objects, expanded the protection scope of some existing ones, and facilitated the emergence of new illegal types. Figures such as digital identity, multiple identities, avatar, virtual money, or Internet domain, and professions such as systems administrator, programmer or blogger, still do not have rules that grant them rights and responsibilities. Similarly, traditional concepts such as privacy had their legal protection range extended to include, for example, the right to be forgotten, and actions classified as unlawful in the context of juvenile pornography have started to include ownership of this sort of material in digital format or merely viewing it. One must also refer the need, perceived early, for the legal protection of actual computer systems that constitute cyberspace to be treated separately in cybercrime law. These and other challenges were evaluated at the turn of the century by various scholars from the field of law. Discussion then allowed identifying two diverging trends with regard to the regulation of cyberspace. The first trend believes that some of the distinctive characteristics of cyberspace are sufficient to justify the impossibility of using existing legal instruments and jurisdiction, advocating a new paradigm of cyberspace regulation. Johnson and Post, among others, share this view, defending cyberspace regulation for Internet users through self-regulation (1996, 2002). In turn, Lessig advocates regulation through "code" and cyberspace architecture (1999; in this as in all cases that follow, the translation is mine). On the other side there are those who argue that the challenges posed by cyberspace to the law are not very different from those placed by other technological developments, and that the transactions carried out within cyberspace are no different from other transnational transactions conducted by other means. The main supporters of this view are Goldsmith (1998) and Trachtman (1998), who reject the exceptionality of cyberspace and defend an evolution within the framework of international law and through strengthening supranational regulatory instruments. The academic debate around the topic has led JP Goldsmith to dub "regulation sceptics" those who, like Johnson and D. D. Post, emphasize the extraordinary nature of cyberspace and ask for a new regulatory model (1998, pp. 1199). In turn, Post calls “unexceptionalists” (2002: 1365) those who advocate that the problems posed by cyberspace to the state's ability to exercise and enforce the law are not that different or new. Without wishing to sound unkind to the authors, henceforth I shall refer to the former as “cesurists” and the latter as “traditionalists”. Taking advantage of the distance in time of this discussion, this paper will begin by addressing the arguments advanced by "cesurists" and "traditionalists", and then will analyse the two dominant solutions for a better regulation of cyberspace: selfregulation and the additional supranational approach. The argument of the "cesurists" focuses on the non-territoriality of cyberspace and, more specifically, on the fact that clear boundaries are a necessary attribute for effective law enforcement. The relationship between space and law, Johnson argues, has multiple dimensions. On the one hand, it is the law that allows a state to exercise sovereignty and control over its territory - a well delimited space recognized by all – as well citizens to defend themselves from state action. In other words, the border concept works as the limit within which the state enforces its law, as well as the limit outside which citizens are safe from state action5. On the other hand, the legal significance of the effects of an action - or absence of it - is the same within the same judicial area and, most likely, different between different legal areas. Conversely, the legitimacy of the law comes from a state’s citizens direct or indirect participation in drafting the law, this legitimacy being lost when applied otherwise. Finally, the preventive effectiveness of the law results from prior knowledge of the law applicable to the area where we practice relevant acts, or the law where such acts occur. JURISDICTIONAL DILEMMA IN CYBER SPACE Jurisdiction essentially refers to the concept where the power to determine and hear a case is vested with an appropriate Court in a legal system. The main issue that clouds Cyber Space Jurisdiction is the fact that parties involved in a dispute are essentially placed in different parts of the world and have only a virtual connection that bonds them all into one realm. The internet now doesn’t make any geographical or jurisdictional boundaries clear, but the users of the internet remain in physical jurisdictions around the world and are thus, subject to laws that are independent of their presence on the internet. A single internet transaction may involve laws of the State in which the user resides or the laws of the State that apply where the server hosting the transaction is located or the laws of the State which apply to the person with whom the transaction takes place. Thus, if there was a hypothetical situation of a user in the USA conducting a transaction with another user in Indonesia through a server hosted in Chennai wherein issues arose, they would theoretically be subject to the laws of all three countries involved. Jurisdiction is the power or the authority of a Court to hear and determine a cause so they can adjudicate and exercise any judicial power in relation to it. Thus, jurisdiction is essentially the authority which the court with regard to deciding of matters that are litigated before it or to take cognizance of matters presented in a formal way for its decision. Customarily, the jurisdiction lies where the cause of action arises. However, the method of determination of jurisdiction becomes incredibly difficult when there are multiple parties involved in various parts of the world. A transaction in the cyberspace fundamentally involves three parties. The user, the server host and the person with whom the transaction is taking place with the need to be put within one jurisdiction. Ideally, the most efficient law to deal with the cyber offence has to address whether a particular issue in the cyberspace is controlled by the laws of a particular State or the location of the user or application of other States’ laws. However, the primary issue which remains is trying to figure out which country’s law should apply. Thus, matters of jurisdiction are subject of State and International law when the contracting parties or the parties in dispute are of different nationalities. Under International law, the State is subjected to the application of its law when there are international parties to the dispute. ENFORCEMENT ISSUES IN CYBERCRIME Law enforcement and the Internet Computer crimes generally and crimes committed through the Internet in particular are extremely challenging because of their sophistication and variance from crime in the ordinary sense. Crimes on the Internet are characterized by high technological innovation, anonymity, distance from the scene of crime, extent of its reach and most important, the unusual profile of the criminal, many times a juvenile. The challenge posed to law enforcement with the advent of Internet is two fold; (a) New crimes and new kinds of delinquent behaviour using the Internet and computers, for example, hacking, spamming, logic bombs, etc.; (b) New methods of committing traditional crimes, for instance, commission of a bank fraud using the net or defamation through e-mail. The difference between crime on the Internet and a crime with another modern technology like the telephone is the importance of the first variety. While crimes are rarely directed against a telephone as an instrument, computers often become the victims of attack.79 Nature of crime on the computer is challenging and requires new definitions and understanding and a restatement of accepted norms of criminal conduct and punishment because of several reasons. Computer apart from being costly equipment is also the repository of immense amount of data. This data can sometimes contain valuable scientific inputs, purely personal matter, study works, emails, and official work. Tampering with this data or stealing it is much more harmful than stealing the computer. This requires recognition of data as a special form of property, data as a privacy right.