Cybercrime in Nepal E-Book

Prabin Subedi

• Herausgeber: GRIN Verlag
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

Diploma Thesis from the year 2014 in the subject Law - Comparative Legal Systems, Comparative Law, University of Oslo, course: LLM ICTL, language: English, abstract: Broadly, the thesis aims to resolve two research questions. Firstly, whether or not the legal regime of cybercrime in Nepal has been able to address current or prospective modus operandi of cyber related crime? And secondly, whether Nepalese legal regime related to cybercrime is in line with the standards set forth in Convention on Cybercrime, 2001 for addressing the cybercrime?. The dissertation is substantially based on secondary resources such as scholar's article, books, and data from police, annual report of court and informal unstructured discussion with personnel from relevant authorities. Furthermore, the thesis has undertaken empirical study of cases and reports along with unstructured interview with relevant officials using random purposive sampling. After observation of secondary sources, unstructured interview, the paper has used primary sources such as treaties and laws to make a analytical study where the findings has been analyzed and conclusion has been drawn.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to acknowledge and express my sincere gratitude to my dissertation supervisor Mr. Tobias Mahler (PhD) who, irrespective of his professional engagements agreed to supervise my thesis. I highly appreciate the beneficial comments he made on my thesis and thank him for his patience with me. The paper would not have completed without his support and assistance.

This thesis would not have been completed without motivation and assistance of my parents and family members.

I am also very gratified to Ms. Pooja Khatri for lending a hand in every thick and thin and incessantly motivating me during my entire work. I am also indebted to my colleagues Mr. Anurag Devkota, Mr. Roshan Gupta, Mr. Bidhan Khaniya, Mr. Barun Ghimire and Mr. Nischal Pokharel, Mr. Bikash Thapa and Mr. Neetij Rai for providing the assistance in completing my dissertation.

I am grateful towards Inspector General of Nepal Police, Mr. Upendrakanta Aryal for his openness in providing data of Nepal police for educational purpose. Similarly, I am thankful towards Inspectors Shaligram Poudel and Subash Thakuri, Deputy Superintendent of Police Mr. Chandra Singh Dhami, officials of Central Bureau of Investigation, Central Department of Investigation, Cybercrime Cell of Nepal Police – Hanumandhoka, Kathmandu District Court and Supreme Court of Nepal.

I genuinely appreciate the assistance done by Norwegian State Education Loan Fund for providing my all economic support for writing the dissertation.

November 2014

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

CHAPTER I - INTRODUCTION

1.1. Background

1.2. Research Questions

1.3. Methodology

CHAPTER II – OVERVIEW ON CYBERCRIME

2.1. Introduction

2.2. What are Cybercrime?

2.3. Modus Operandi of Cybercrime

CHAPTER III – CYBERCRIME IN NEPAL

3.1. Nepalese Legal Regime governing Cybercrime

3.1.1. Electronic Transaction Act, 2008

3.1.2. Banking Offence and Punishment Act, 2008

3.1.3. Children's Act 1992

3.1.4. Some Public (Crime and Punishment) Act, 1970

3.1.5. The Patent, Design and Trademark Act, 1965

3.1.6. Copyright Act, 2002

3.1.7. Consumer Protection Act, 1998

3.1.8. Other

3.2. Threat of Cybercrime in Nepal

3.3. Present Scenario

3.3.1. Cases

3.3.2. Complaint registered tendency

3.4. Prospective threats that may arise

CHAPTER IV – EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON CYBERCRIME

4.1. International perspective

4.2. European Convention on Cybercrime

CHAPTER V – ANALYSIS

5.1. Nepalese legal regime addressing current or prospective modus operandi of cybercrime

5.1.1. Substantive Legal Regime

5.1.2. Enforcement

5.2. Comparison of Nepalese legal regime with Convention on Cybercrime

CHAPTER VI – CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

6.1. Conclusion

6.2. Recommendation

Bibliography

CHAPTER I - INTRODUCTION

1.1. Background

"Because of its technological advancements, today’s criminals can be more nimble and more elusive than ever before. If you can sit in a kitchen in St. Petersburg, Russia, and steal from a bank in New York, you understand the dimensions of the problem."[1]

— Former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno

Computers and the Internet has now become backbone for virtually all facets of modern life, from personal communications and finance to the processing and management of electrical grids and power plants are being dependent with computer and internet.[2]In today's 21st Century, our lives have been dominated by computers and communication networks. The advent of computers has had far-reaching effects and, although some people may not have had the opportunity to navigate the “digital highway” [3] directly, they probably have been touched in other ways. Although the growth of technology in present era has resulted in flaunt of commercial growth, thriving economies and spread of democracy, on the other hand it has also resulted in increment of cost. One such cost that we now face is a new twist on traditional crime – cybercrime.[4]Criminological research has expanded its focus over the last two decades to address the various forms of technology-enabled crime and the applicability of traditional theories to account for offending.[5]Therapid growth of the information and communication technology (ICT) networks in cyberspace has created new opportunities for criminals in perpetrating crime, and to exploit online vulnerabilities and attack countries’ critical information infrastructure.[6] As a result of intensification of information technology, the modus operandi in commission of crime has resulted in abet of technology in committing crime. The crime of fraud or defamation or forgery that used to be committed traditionally by use of paper or verbal way have now turned to be committed in social networking or e-commerce. These crimes have been occurring since the creation of the internet and technology. If there is information to be shared, there is information to be sabotaged. The challenge is countered by every online individual, company or organization across the globe.[7]

In particular, cybercrime against business is growing all around the world. It is estimated that the likely annual cost to the global economy from cybercrime is more than $400 billion.[8] A conservative estimate would be $375 billion in losses, while the maximum could be as much as $575 billion.[9] Even the smallest of these figures is more than the national income of most countries and governments and companies underestimate how much risk they face from cybercrime and how quickly this risk can grow. One European survey points out that 43% of over 3000 surveyed companies, organizations, government agencies believe that cybercrime will be the biggest and most damaging class of criminal activity in the future.[10] The increasing role of the Internet sales, the massive amount of data transferred through the computerized information systems inside and outside organizations, much of which is very sensitive and is related to the core of business; the immense use of Internet in the workplace; and increased access to confidential information, all of these are factors that contribute to the growing threat of cybercrime.[11]

Nepal, a landlocked country positioned in South Asia cannot be exceptional territory for commission of cybercrime. The incidence of cybercrime in Nepal is directly proportional to the level of progress made in Nepal in information technology. The internet users in Nepal have been rampantly increased. As per the data provided by International Monetary Fund, there were 50,000 internet users in Nepal in 2000 which has increased to 2,690,162 in 2012.[12]According to the World Bank, internet penetration had reached 13.3 percent in Nepal as of December 2013.[13] Increase in internet user has certainly increased the instances of cybercrime in Nepal. As discussed in later chapter of this thesis, newspaper reports, police reports, the database of the police, judicial decisions and data from scholars' articles support the fact that Nepal has been evidenced as a hub for increasing cybercrime in recent days. The media almost daily reports cases regarding cybercrime in Nepal, which however is not same when researcher examines the report of courts and police, which means that the instances of cybercrime are either unreported or the perpetrator is not invoked with offence. The thesis aims to address the issue of instances of cybercrime being unreported or not being invoked. Thus this thesis broadly intends to highlight the present modus operandi of instances of cybercrime and evaluate whether or not the existing substantive laws of Nepal have been able to address the growing new pattern of commission of crime. While evaluating the laws, the thesis also examines the Nepalese legal system in light of the standard set forth by European Convention on Cybercrime[14].

1.2. Research Questions

Broadly, the thesis aims to resolve two research questions. Firstly, whether or not the legal regime of cybercrime in Nepal has been able to address current or prospective modus operandi of cyber related crime? And secondly, whether Nepalese legal regime related to cybercrime is in line with the standards set forth in Convention on Cybercrime, 2001 for addressing the cybercrime?

1.3. Methodology

The dissertation is substantially based on secondary resources such as scholar's article, books, and data from police, annual report of court and informal unstructured discussion with personnel from relevant authorities. Furthermore, the thesis has undertaken empirical study of cases and reports along with unstructured interview with relevant officials using random purposive sampling. After observation of secondary sources, unstructured interview, the paper has used primary sources such as treaties and laws to make a analytical study where the findings has been analyzed and conclusion has been drawn.