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Podcast on Cybercrimes in a virtual workspace - with Ms. Pallavi Pratap Q. Is there an increased chance of sexual harassment in the digital workspace? A. With the COVID situation, the physical interactions were reduced by a lot, so there really wasn’t any physical harassment in those times. But in the digital space, I would say that all of us are very vulnerable, especially because - no matter what you do, however many layers of security you apply on your account, people can still find a way to message you, or misuse your pictures, or find your contact details. To top this, in the virtual space, we share a lot from our personal lives. It makes it all the more easier for people to find you and harass you in the physical space then. Q. While the POSH Act is gender-neutral, do you believe that there is any community that is more vulnerable in the virtual space than the rest? A. I believe that while women are vulnerable in the digital space, there’s a higher danger to the LGBT community. You see people online harassing them, bullying them for their life choices. And then we have people, celebrities being trolled and harassed for anything and everything, be it a woman posting an exercise video or a harmless tweet. Just because it is in a public domain, anonymous people take full advantage and misuse their privacy. And it makes it difficult for everyone to give their opinion or voice any concerns because they’re judged on so many parameters. Q. What measures do you believe the government as well as private institutions have taken to prevent harassment of men in the workplace? A. TI think as a society, we have yet to grow up to that level where we’re able to identify that men can also be victims. Because of a patriarchal mindset and the way our society is structured, traditionally we consider women to be the victims. And this may also be because, sometimes when a marginalised group gets rights, there are instances of misuse and abuse of the same statutes that were meant to empower. This implies that men are not only victims of sexual harassment, similar to how women are, they are also more prone to be victims of harassment in way of misuse and abuse of rights. Interview Link

Podcast on Pornography and its implications - Ms. Mary Sharpe & Dr. Darryl Mead Q. Does watching pornography affect the normal sexual behaviour/expectations of people? A. Pornography affects the normal sexual behaviour of people as by watching it on screen, people often try to learn different ways of being sexual although it’s not necessarily how our biology is set up to be as it includes violence and rarely shows a negotiation of consent and doesn’t teach the youth what it takes to have a good and loving relationship. At a malleable age of the brain, youths often get exposed to all kinds of imaginable and unimaginable content online in order to be great lovers but the kind of materials available on pornography sites are not helpful for long-term relationships. Q. What are your views on the impact of technological advancements on pornographic content that is available online? A. Virtual reality developed further addiction by keeping the arousal levels high in an abnormal and artificial way. Real-life sex becomes boring as compared to artificial pornography content which hooks up the users to technology, costing them money and hence they come under the influence of multi-billion dollar companies and artificial intelligence working for their own profits. This causes the youth to incline more towards artificial pornography than real-life sex and interpersonal relationships. Mobile phones, which are used by almost everyone nowadays, make it possible to create high-definition porn whenever desired which often leads to revenge porn. Moreover, billions of users on porn sites often don’t know that while accessing porn sites, most of the companies access private information from their phone and sell it to advertisers to make profits. Q. Is pornography in itself an act of violence against women or does it encourage such gender-based violence because of the brutality being displayed on the screen? A. As a woman, pornography looks like an act of violence since it involves so much of coercive sex. The radical feminists say that the paid actors in pornography are told to perform in a way that the sex is enjoyable to look at but in reality, it’s just a way of objectifying women for the attention of the male gaze although many women enjoy pornography as well. Where liberal feminists say that pornography is empowering, women invest several years raising a child while it takes a few seconds for a man to inseminate. Hence, women are more vulnerable in the modern hookup culture by putting their bodies and several years at stake as compared to men because of several biological difference like women going more for quality over quantity, unlike men. Interview Link

Cybercrimes Child Pornography Cyberflashing Deepfakes Revenge Porn Sextortion Upskirting

Podcast on Cybercrimes against women - with Dr. Pattathil Dhanya Menon Q. Why do you think these scams are so effective? A. Even if you do not accept the friend request and you do not get a video call, they can still send you a link; which when opened will capture your face and the same is morphed into dirty and obscene videos. This is very dangerous and people should be aware regarding such scams and there should be awareness spread in the society. ​ Q. How do we spot that there is a honey trap fraud that is happening? A. As a first step, before accepting a friend request, you must verify that person’s identity. If an unknown person sends you a request, do not accept it because even throughout our schooling years, our parents have warned us against unknown people. If by mistake that person is added to your friend list, keep checking your friend list every 8 to 10 days and remove any unknown people. If found. Generally nowadays, people are scattered in all parts of the world and so are missing their friends. As a result, people are making new friends online. They start sharing their personal details and family issues as such with them which could be later used by that person to blackmail him. ​ Interview Link

Child Pornography Under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, the word child pornography has been given a legal definition in the country of India (POCSO). The sexual abuse of children may also assume the shape of child pornography. According to the legislation enacted, the term child pornography refers to any visual portrayal of sexually graphic action involving a kid (minor not more than 18 years of age). Photographs of molestation are another term that may be used interchangeably with pictures of child pornography. The issue of child abuse through pornographic means have been increasing rapidly day by day in India as well as the world. According to statistics provided by the National Crime Records Bureau, there were 738 incidents of child pornography that were filed in India in the year 2020 alone. It is possible that perhaps the stats are only pointing towards the fact that many individuals have stepped forth to disclose such incidents. As shown in a study that was published on the legal news and analysis service webpage jurist.org on May 14, 2020, in India, a sexually explicit clip is recorded almost every 40 seconds. More than 25% of the online searches in India are regarding pornographic material of children. Laws regarding Child Pornography India has no laws that specifically deal with cyber flashing but, for now, these incidents are being covered by the Indian Penal Code and Information Technology Act, 2000. Section 509 of IPC works for any act that intends to insult a woman’s modesty Section 354A(iii) of IPC deals with any man who shows pornographic material to a woman against her will. This section can cover masked cases of cyberflashing Section 293 of IPC deals with whoever distributes, exhibits or circulates obscene material to anyone under 20 years of age Section 67 of the IT Act takes action against anyone for publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form.

Deepfakes Deepfakes are fake videos that are manipulated via an algorithm that uses Generative Adversarial Networks . To fool the spectator, the manipulator copies the blinking pattern, head movements, speech patterns and, facial expressions of the concerned individual to generate an astonishingly identical but fabricated video. The word ‘Deepfake’ has a specific meaning attributed to it. The term ‘fake’ shows that the output is fabricated and the term ‘Deep’ refers to the deep learning, a type of machine learning fuelled by Artificial Intelligence. When a person comes across a fake video of themselves engaging in pornographic acts, they start questioning whether its viewers would accept that it’s fake or would they believe that what they are seeing is the reality? And the answer is always tilted towards the latter. They consider what they are seeing to be true without questioning its authenticity. Questioning the authenticity of the media they are consuming is too much of a task for the general public. This causes the victims of a deepfake video to get consumed by a feeling of dreadness for the rest of their lives. It instills in them a ‘feeling of shame’ whenever they interact with the outside world . Helen Mort, the British writer , one of the victims of deepfakes, explains that “It’s like you’re in a tunnel, going further and further into an enclosed space, where there’s no light,”. Laws regarding Deepfakes In India, there is no legal regulation to keep in check the Deepfake technology. Instead, there are some other laws can be resorted to by the victims to challenge the deepfakes: Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code, 1960 defines Sedition. Any person who defames another by deep faking his video can be subjection to criminal actions under this section. As per Section 52 of the Copyright Infringement Act, 1957 , deepfakes are copyright infringements. It defines the acts which are copyright infringements and deepfakes are not mentioned under the section which points to the fact that they are copyright infringements. Section 57 of the Copyright Infringement Act, 1957 allows the victims of fabrication or mutilation of content that defames them, to sue the offender. As deepfakes are fabricated videos, the victims of deepfakes can approach the court under this section of the act. Section 66D of the Information Technology Act, 2000 prohibits personation of computer resources or communication devices with a malafide intention for cheating. As per Section 66E of the Information Technology Act, 2000, deepfakes violate the privacy of the individual.

A project against Cybercrimes About ABOUT Tasveer Tasveer as a Project recognises that reporting cybercrime, especially crimes of sensitive nature can be a tedious task, owing to the fact that such crimes aren’t taken seriously by the authorities, and the investigation of such crimes isn’t done as expeditiously as other serious crimes and the laws regarding such crimes aren’t specific to deal with the same. Tasveer works on cybercrimes like – revenge porn, cyberflashing, upskirting, image-based sexual harassment, sextortion & other forms of sexual abuse on social media which are mostly considered taboo subjects in India. Tasveer is an attempt to avoid situations whereby victims don’t report crimes by spreading awareness about the legal provisions, both practical and theoretical, currently available to victims. Tasveer as a project would focus on filling the research gap present in India on cybercrimes of a sensitive nature. It further intends to raise awareness about incidents and ways to protect victims from such crimes. In order to raise awareness, it would utilise the medium of podcasts and blogs as well as events focused on cybercrimes. Webinars, podcasts and blogs would share the opinion of experts, discuss legal provisions and bring out the realities behind reporting such crimes. Tasveer would also collaborate with other organisations working on cybercrimes so as to maximise outreach. We would connect with law firms and corporates so as to research the mechanisms in place to report cybercrimes of sexual nature within the workplace. Contact

Anuj Kumar Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Legal Desire Media & Insights Anuj Kumar founded Legal Desire aiming to give new dimension to Law which is now Global leading Legal Media and Insights house for Legal Fraternity. Having expertise in Legal Publishing & Legal Marketing, closely working with over 50+ top tier global law firms in various practices for comprehensive business development solutions, empowering law firms and lawyers to successfully build their brands, connect with legal consumers to grow their practice by managing their business development and legal practice management. Founded Fashion Law Journal, for exploring the legal landscape of the Fashion Industry to create possibilities and opportunities for the legal industry to aid the Fashion Industry and its stakeholders. FLJ provides expert, timely and relevant insights about all things fashion! You'll find in-depth articles covering everything you need to know related to law and fashion industry, legal issues regarding the fashion industry, how to start a business in the fashion world, trends (and beyond), design & technology news as well as an around-the-world look at glamour. Anuj established the Department of Forensics and Criminal Investigation, Legal Desire to pave a roadmap for next-generation Criminal Investigation in association with International and National Investigative agencies. Appreciated by International and National Forensics investigative authorities including Ministry of Home Affairs, Central Bureau of Investigation, Central and State Forensic Labs for the initiative. Additionally Anuj is associated with Niti Aayog, Govt of India as Mentor, Atal Innovation Mission (An Initiative to create and promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship across the length and breadth of our country). Member of Editorial Board of International and National Journals. He was finalist at Start up Conclave 2018 held at IIM Lucknow organised by Startup India, Govt of India. Anuj holds certifications from reputed institutions in IPR, Criminal Law & Forensics, Criminal Psychology, Legal Marketing, Policy Research, Fashion Law etc. Anuj has also authored book titled ‘A Practical Guide to Fashion Law’, ‘Guide to Forensics and Indian Law’, ‘Fastrack to Legal Drafting & Research’ and has numerous publications in International & National Journal, contributed Chapters in Book and a regular contributor at leading media outlets.

Cyber Flashing Cyber flashing is a form of cyber sexual harassment. It is the act of sending unsolicited media of sexual nature without the recipient’s consent. The transfer can be made through peer-to-peer services like AirDrop or Bluetooth or over Wi-fi or social media apps like Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat or dating apps. A lot of these methods grant the offender anonymity which makes it harder to identify the culprit and it gives them the confidence to repeat the act. When peer-to-peer services is used, anonymity comes with the threat of proximity. In recent years, these cases have skyrocketed with the rise of social media and the availability of technology. Cyberflashing also includes exposing someone to unwanted obscene content. So, sending someone unsolicited pornographic links or masked sexual media also falls under Cyberflashing. YouGov’s survey concluded that 41% of all millennial women unsolicited images of a man’s private parts. This percentage is higher for younger girls (53% for girls between 18 and 24) and declines as they age (36% for ages between 31 and 36). Laws regarding Cyber Flashing India has no laws that specifically deal with cyber flashing but, for now, these incidents are being covered by Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Information Technology Act, 2000. Section 509 of the IPC works for any act that intends to insult a woman’s modesty Section 354A(iii) of the IPC deals with any man who shows pornographic material to a woman against her will. This section can cover masked cases of cyberflashing Section 293 of the IPC deals with whoever distributes, exhibits or circulates obscene material to anyone under 20 years of age Section 67 of the IT Act takes action against anyone for publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form.

Sextortion The Delhi Cyber Unit on their official website describes Sextortion as a fraud that can take place both against male and female victims (although the majority of the victims are primarily females) and the perpetrator can be both an unknown person or a known one. In such crimes, the culprit usually entices and induces the victim to share their private and nude photographs or videos over the phone, which are then stored and saved by the former for future extortion (sextortion). To elucidate further, in layman's language, with the advancement of technology there has been an increase in sexual extortion, especially during the Covid-19 Pandemic. The victims are often targeted and are made to indulge in non-consensual activities under the threat of sharing private/ lascivious material. This is termed Sextortion or Sexual Extortion. There are several different forms of Sextortion – one of which is Cyber Sextortion. In Cyber Sextortion, the perpetrator gains trust of the victim by befriending them through social media platforms. The victims then, are enticed into sending their private images through the same medium with the assurance of complete secrecy. However, in several cases, the victims are threatened with the publications of these images/videos and are coerced into bending to the whims of the perpetrator. It is not essential that the perpetrator obtains the images through the victim’s consent. In several cases, the victim’s photos are obtained without their consent i.e.- through password cracking, hacking etc. One of the most common ways of Cyber Sextortion is through social media websites. The perpetrator keeps the images and videos collected as ransom and coerces the victim to send graphic content as well as perform criminal acts with the threat of publishing the graphic content. Another method of Cyber sextortion is through phishing through emails. Innocent victims are targeted through e-mails claiming that the perpetrator has their account passwords. They are then threatened with leakage of their private poses on social media unless they co-operate with the perpetrator. Laws regarding Sextortion In India, Sextortion has not been recognised as a separate crime. Thus, the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Information Technology Act govern the offence of sextortion in India. Section 108(1)(i)(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code allows the victim to contact the magistrate in her area and inform them about the person she believes is spreading obscene material. The magistrate has the authority to detain such an individual(s) and order them to sign a bond to avert him from spreading the material. This may throw the suspect off and deter him from committing the offence. This is a brief redressal section because the victim can file a complaint with the magistrate without providing direct evidence of a crime. Section 292 of the Indian Penal Code makes it a crime to circulate lascivious material via electronic means. An offence under this section is punishable by two years in prison or a fine of Rs 2000. If images are captured from a private location without her consent, Section 345C of the Indian Penal Code, which defines voyeurism, can be used as an offence under sextortion. Section 354A of the Indian Penal Code makes any demand or request for sexual favours and any physical contact and advances involving unwanted and explicit sexual overtures illegal. An offence under this section is punishable with a prison sentence of up to 1 year or with a fine up to 5 lakh rupees. Section 384 of the Indian Penal Code defines extortion as an offence that can be used in Sextortion cases.