CYBER CRIME

With the growing technology, internet is also growing at a fast pace. What is also growing is Cyber crime . Nearly 13,301 Cyber crime cases were registered in 2011. The statistics further stated Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra have seen the highest number of cyber crimes registered under the new IT Act in India. Surprisingly, these three states together contribute more than 70 per cent to India’s revenue from IT and IT related industries.

The increasing use of internet for activities such as online banking has increased the vulnerabilities to a great extent. The maximum offenders come from 18-30 age group. Most of us use internet for almost everything, from shopping to sharing photos. By doing this we are vulnerable to crimes as our private information is used which could easily be leaked and used against us. There have been many cyber crimes ranging from hacking, theft, stalking, data diddling, spamming and email bombing.

The problem is that most cases remain unreported due to lack of awareness. Capacity of human mind is unfathomable. It is not possible to eliminate cyber crime from cyber space. However, it is quite possible to check them. An individual can do their best by simply being more cautious, knowledgeable and careful. Internet users need to watch suspicious emails, think twice before giving any personal information, use unique passwords, and run anti-virus and anti-spyware software. Do not open any email or run programs from unknown sources.

We all today are at the risk of cyber crime. As all things have their pros and cons so does internet.