All NotesCivil LawInformation Technology Act, 2000

Information Technology Act, 2000

Cyber Law vs Information Technology Law: Meaning, Scope and Objects of the IT Act

The terms 'cyber law' and 'information technology law' are often used as if they meant the same thing, and in India both are commonly used to describe the Information Technology Act, 2000. They are, however, different ways of looking at the law: one centred on conduct in cyberspace, the other on technology and information as such. This note explains the meaning and scope of cyber law, the meaning of information technology law, how the two differ and overlap, and the objects that the IT Act was enacted, and later amended, to achieve.

1. The Law of the Road and the Law of the Vehicle

Traffic law tells people how to behave on the road: who may drive, at what speed, and what happens after an accident. Motor vehicle law in the wider sense also covers how cars are built, sold, insured and licensed, whether or not they are ever driven. Cyber law is like the law of the road: it governs conduct in cyberspace. Information technology law is like the law of the vehicle: it governs the technology and the information it carries, online or offline. The two meet wherever the vehicle is on the road, which is most of the time.

2. Cyber Law: Meaning

  • Cyberspace. The virtual environment created by interconnected computers, networks and the internet, in which people communicate, transact and store information. The word was popularised by William Gibson's 1984 novel Neuromancer.
  • Cyber law. The body of law that governs cyberspace: the legal recognition of electronic transactions, the rights and duties of those who use and operate networks, and the prevention and punishment of wrongs committed through computers.
  • No single statute. In India, cyber law is drawn from the IT Act, 2000 and its rules, together with the BNS, the BSA, the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Copyright Act, 1957, the Trade Marks Act, 1999 and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.
  • Three functions. Enabling (giving legal effect to electronic activity), regulating (setting duties for platforms, Certifying Authorities and data holders) and deterring (penalties and offences)

3. Scope of Cyber Law

The fields that make up cyber law

Figure 1: The fields that make up cyber law

  • E-commerce, e-contracts and e-governance. Legal recognition of electronic records, signatures and contracts, and electronic delivery of government services (IT Act, Chapters II to IV)
  • Cybercrime. Hacking, identity theft, cheating by personation, cyber terrorism, obscene and child sexual abuse material (IT Act, Chapter XI), and general offences committed through computers under the BNS.
  • Data protection and privacy. Section 43A and Section 72A of the IT Act, and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, against the background of Puttaswamy (2017), which recognised privacy as a fundamental right.
  • Intellectual property in cyberspace. Domain names, online copyright and software. In Satyam Infoway Ltd. v. Sifynet Solutions (P) Ltd., (2004) 6 SCC 145, the Supreme Court held that a domain name is a business identifier entitled to protection like a trade mark, including through an action for passing off.
  • Jurisdiction. Which court may hear disputes arising from online activity. In Banyan Tree Holding (P) Ltd. v. A. Murali Krishna Reddy (Delhi High Court, Division Bench, 2009), the Court held that a website's mere accessibility is not enough; the plaintiff must show that the defendant purposefully targeted the forum.
  • Electronic evidence. Admissibility of electronic records, formerly under Sections 65A and 65B of the Evidence Act and now under Sections 61 to 63 of the BSA (Anvar P.V., 2014; Arjun Panditrao Khotkar, 2020)
  • Intermediaries and online speech. Safe harbour under Section 79, blocking under Section 69A, and the free speech limits set in Shreya Singhal v. Union of India, (2015) 5 SCC 1.
  • Cyber security. CERT-In under Section 70B, protection of critical information infrastructure under Section 70A, and reasonable security practices.

4. Information Technology Law: Meaning

  • Meaning. The body of law that governs information technology itself, that is, the creation, processing, storage, transfer and protection of information by computers and communication systems, and the commercial dealings in that technology.
  • Content. Software and hardware contracts, software licensing, IT outsourcing and service agreements, telecommunications regulation, technical standards, protection of software and databases, and government procurement of IT.
  • Online or offline. IT law applies whether or not a network is involved. A software licence for a standalone machine, or a contract to build a data centre, is an IT law matter but not strictly a cyber law matter.
  • Indian sources. The IT Act, 2000 (despite its name, a mixture of both fields), the Indian Contract Act, 1872, the Copyright Act, 1957, the Patents Act, 1970, the Telecommunications Act, 2023 and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

5. Cyber Law and IT Law Compared

Two overlapping fields

Figure 2: Two overlapping fields

How the two fields differ

Figure 3: How the two fields differ

  • Focus. Cyber law focuses on conduct in cyberspace; IT law focuses on technology and information as such.
  • Breadth. IT law is the wider field, covering technology whether or not it is networked; cyber law is concerned with networked activity, mainly the internet.
  • Character. Cyber law has a strong public law and criminal law element; IT law is largely commercial and regulatory.
  • Overlap. Electronic records, electronic signatures, e-contracts, data protection and electronic evidence belong to both.
  • Indian usage. The IT Act is commonly called India's cyber law, although it is named an information technology law. Its early chapters on records, signatures and Certifying Authorities are closer to IT law; its chapters on penalties, offences and intermediaries are classic cyber law.

⚠ How to answer the distinction

Examiners reward a clear criterion, not a list of topics. State that the difference lies in focus and breadth: cyber law governs activity in cyberspace, IT law governs technology and information generally; IT law is wider; the two overlap substantially; and the IT Act contains both.

6. Objects of the Information Technology Act, 2000

The objects of the Act appear from three sources: its Preamble, the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Information Technology Bill, 1999, and the objects of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008.

Preamble, Information Technology Act, 2000 (extract)

An Act to provide legal recognition for transactions carried out by means of electronic data interchange and other means of electronic communication, commonly referred to as 'electronic commerce', which involve the use of alternatives to paper-based methods of communication and storage of information, to facilitate electronic filing of documents with the Government agencies ... AND WHEREAS it is considered necessary to give effect to the said resolution and to promote efficient delivery of Government services by means of reliable electronic records.

  • 1. Legal recognition of electronic commerce. To give electronic transactions, records and signatures the same legal effect as their paper equivalents.
  • 2. Electronic governance. To enable electronic filing with government, electronic issue of licences and payments, retention of electronic records and an Electronic Gazette, so that government services are delivered efficiently.
  • 3. A trust infrastructure. To create a Controller and licensed Certifying Authorities so that parties who never meet can rely on each other's signatures.
  • 4. Harmonisation with international law. To give effect to the UN General Assembly resolution commending the UNCITRAL Model Law, so that Indian law is compatible with that of trading partners.
  • 5. Deterrence of computer misuse. To provide civil penalties and criminal offences for unauthorised access, damage to data and other misuse.
  • 6. Consequential amendments. To amend the Indian Penal Code, the Evidence Act, the Bankers' Books Evidence Act and the RBI Act to accommodate electronic records.

The Statement of Objects and Reasons, 1999

The Statement of Objects and Reasons explained that new communication systems and digital technology had changed how people live and do business, that electronic commerce offered efficiency but was held back by laws that assumed paper, and that a law was needed to give legal sanction to electronic transactions and to facilitate electronic commerce and electronic governance, in line with the UNCITRAL Model Law.

The Objects of the 2008 Amendment

  • Technology neutrality. To replace the technology-specific digital signature with the wider electronic signature, so that the law would keep pace with new authentication technologies.
  • New forms of cybercrime. To address offences that had emerged since 2000, such as publishing sexually explicit material, video voyeurism, identity theft, phishing and breach of confidentiality by intermediaries.
  • Data protection. To make bodies corporate liable to pay compensation for negligence in protecting sensitive personal data (Section 43A)
  • Intermediaries. To clarify the liability of intermediaries and the conditions of safe harbour.
  • Cyber security. To create institutional mechanisms such as CERT-In and a nodal agency for critical information infrastructure.

Assessing the Objects

  • Achieved. Electronic records, signatures and contracts are now routinely relied upon, e-governance operates at scale, and electronic evidence is regularly admitted.
  • Gaps. The original Act had no data protection regime and a technology-specific signature; online jurisdiction remains largely judge-made; and Section 66A, added in 2008, was struck down as unconstitutional in 2015.
  • Beyond the Act. Data protection has moved to a separate statute, and a Digital India Act to replace the IT Act has been proposed but not enacted.

7. Quick Revision and Memory Aids

  • 'Road and vehicle'. Cyber law governs conduct on the road; IT law governs the vehicle.
  • 'Enable, regulate, deter'. The three functions of cyber law.
  • 'Satyam: domain = trade mark'. IP in cyberspace.
  • 'Banyan Tree: targeting, not mere access'. Online jurisdiction.
  • 'R-G-T-H-D-A'. Objects: Recognition, Governance, Trust, Harmonisation, Deterrence, Amendments.
  • '2008: neutral, new crimes, data, platforms, security'. Objects of the Amendment.

8. Frequently Asked Questions

What is cyber law?

The body of law governing cyberspace, covering the legal recognition of electronic transactions, the regulation of those who operate and use networks, and the prevention and punishment of wrongs committed through computers.

How does cyber law differ from information technology law?

Cyber law focuses on conduct in cyberspace, while information technology law governs technology and information generally, whether or not networked. IT law is the wider field, and the two overlap on electronic records, signatures, contracts, data and evidence.

What are the main objects of the IT Act, 2000?

To give legal recognition to electronic commerce, to facilitate electronic governance, to create a trust infrastructure of Certifying Authorities, to harmonise Indian law with the UNCITRAL Model Law, and to deter computer misuse through penalties and offences.

9. Related Topics

  • Topic 1: Introduction, Object and Scope. The Act in outline.
  • Topic 4: Electronic Commerce. How commerce drove cyber law.
  • Topic 6: Legal Recognition. How the Act achieves its first objects.