Victim of cybercrime?

Here is how you can file a complaint against online trolling

By REVATHI SIVA KUMAR

The virtual abuse of several celebrities, activists and journalists keep drawing the attention to the chilling phenomenon of ‘trolling’ that has seen an exponential rise since the advent of social media. The people have suffered not just verbal, but also relentless sociopathic, emotional slander. In a way, it is a democratising trend. No one is spared. Anyone who holds a point of view that is different from that of the establishment or the troller is subject to continuous, intense harrassment and verbal assault on online platforms. The National Crime Records Bureau documents all such cases under a general category of cyber crimes. There were more than 33,531 cases of cyber attacks cases during 2014-16.

‘Trolls’ actually describe characters from fantasy literature – most recently the Harry Potter series – and seem almost cute, compared to the vicious beings that are spreading vitriol and setting the internet on fire. A virtual troll is a person – completely human, mind you – who posts a provocative or abusive message to a news group or message board. He or she is a cyber bully and disrupter, who is causing or feeding off the pain and sorrow of people, mostly as a leisure activity or sometimes, even as a paid job from a party or an institution. Trolls might be following almost a hundred victims, just jumping from post to post. They do not seem to be normal and often bring their own baggage of psychological or sexual aberrance.

Trolls typically stalk, harass or bully a person, a group of people or an organization. They may throw lies, fake accusations, dominating attitudes, issue threats, refer to identity theft, damage data or equipment, engage in soliciting, or gather information to harass and belittle people. They send incendiary or abusive messages, electronic viruses or even e-mails to those who do not toe their line of thinking.

But in an age when such instances are reaching alarming proportions, what does one do? Just retract and move on? Or is there hope to be found in the law of the land? Recently, the Ministry of Home Affairs in the Indian government announced plans to train 27,500 police personnel in line with a scheme for Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and Children (CCPWC) from ‘Nirbhaya’ funds in 2017-2020. But so far, there is no significant action on cyber misuse.

If you too have faced or are subjected to trolling and abuse, what can you do to stop the bullying? If you are a minor, contact your parent, guardian, teacher or any other trusted adult. If you are an adult and wondering what you can do about it, then start with the following steps.

Understand the bullies. Most pesterers have sociological, psychological or deep-seated mental issues, with roots in past history of sexual abuse, mental illness, or problems with their sexual identity. Is it possible to identify, understand and engage them? Maybe you can begin to deal with them, with some gentle handling, to find out the background of their problems. Even though that sounds too good to be true, you never know. They might be borderline attention-seekers who find it good enough to be cossetted a bit and then leave. However, this needs a judgmental call — both with regard to the issue and the nature of bullying — and if they have been particularly vitriolic and threatening, this may not be the right course of action.

You might think that if you keep quiet about it, the trolls would just run their course and stop. But don’t. Speak up. Don’t let them harass you, and don’t assume that if you keep quiet about it, he or she would tire of the pastime and slink away. They won’t. So talk and act. Block out the bully from Google Chat, Facebook or Twitter. It would be best to block the posts or messages that harass and intimidate you.

But save the evidence. Especially if the chats, posts and messages from the stalkers are hurtful and harassing. Once you compile the visual information that indicates the bully’s behaviour, you have foolproof evidence on your side. If the bully sends you hurtful or threatening chats, posts or emails, do not delete them. Having a written record of such behaviour will give you the proof that you need to have any action initiated against them.

Report the bullies to the service providers and the platform; be specific about your complaints. A vulgar, offensive or annoying stalker can just be banned from Facebook if you report him or her.

Cyber crime, including trolling, has no jurisdiction. Any cyber crime can be reported to the cyber crime units of a city, irrespective of the place where the offence is committed. If you have anything to report, contact the Cyber Crime Cell (see box on right). You can also try to contact a well-known cyber crime lawyer who can help you file a complaint either at a cell, or online. Your lawyer would also help you to share some facts when you call the cyber crime helpline number.

These are the steps you need to take. Submit an application letter addressing the chief of the cyber crime investigation cell. State your facts with your name, address and contact number. Attach or annex documents, according to the type of cyber crime against which you are reporting your complaint. Attach a copy or screenshot of the profile or content that you are objecting to. Fix a screenshot of the URL, linking the offensive content. Add hard and soft copies of the content. You can submit the soft copy in a CD-R. If you are not able to find a cyber cell in your locality, you can file an FIR in your local police station. If you face any hurdles in filing an FIR, you can contact the commissioner or judicial magistrate of your city.

A few sections under the IT Act or the Indian Penal Code (IPC) may be pertinent to your complaint. You may even want to discuss these with your lawyer to figure out your best chances of redress.

© Oorvani Foundation/Open Media Initiative. Also available online at Citizen Matters.