Cyber Crimes Erode People's Trust In Online Transactions, Against Aspirations Of Advanced 'Digital Bharat': Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has observed that crime-enables crimes erode trust of the people in online financial transactions platforms which is against the aspirations of an advanced “Digital Bharat.”

“These online frauds contribute to eroding the trust of people in the online financial transactions and thus, discourage the newcomers into entering the digital realm, which negatively impacts the overall economy of the country,” Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said.

Noting that the modus operandi employed by cyber criminals changes and evolves every day, Justice Sharma said that courts have the responsibility to address the grievances of those who, in their pursuit of technology, end up being defrauded of their hard-earned money.

“The app developers take advantage of cyber-illiteracy of the people, who unknowingly give access to their contacts and images to a mobile application and its developer, which is then misused to extort money from them. The personal details of the innocent people are also being taken and misused for committing fraud, as in the present case,” the court said.

Justice Sharma made the observations while denying bail to a man accused of defrauding people through online transactions.

The prosecution submitted that the analysis of the bank accounts of the accused revealed that the total amount of transactions in the entire case was about Rs. 140 crores.

Dismissing the bail plea, Justice Sharma said that the fraud had taken place at the most difficult times, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the citizens during the said period were suffering losses, lost business and were looking for survival in the market and earning for themselves.

“The innocent investors who had deposited Rs. 4,000/- or Rs.5,000/- in the hope of obtaining loans for survival may have even afforded to deposit this amount with difficulty. The conspiracy in the present case must have attracted thousands of investors as the money trail till date is of about Rs.140 crores, prima-facie,” the court said.

Titled VINEET JHAVAR v. STATE OF NCT OF DELHI

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Del) 1248

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