Intellectual property rights and cyber security

1. Intellectual Property in Cyberspace

2. Intellectual Property (IP) simply refers to the creation of the mind.
It refers to the possession of thought or design by the one who
came up with it. It offers the owner of any inventive design or any
form of distinct work some exclusive rights, that make it unlawful to
copy or reuse that work without the owner’s permission.
It is a part of property law. People associated with literature, music,
invention, etc. can use it in business practices.

3. There are numerous types of tools of protection
that come under the term “intellectual property”.
Notable among these are the following:
 Patent
 Trademark
 Geographical indications
 Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits
 Trade secrets
 Copyrights
 Industrial Designs

4. Cyberspace is the non-physical domain where numerous computers are
connected through computer networks to establish communication
between them. With the expansion of technology, cyberspace has come
within reach of every individual. This fact led to the emergence of
cyberspace as a business platform and hence increases pressure on
Intellectual Property.
Nowadays, cyber crimes do not solely limit themselves to fraud,
cyberbullying, identity thefts but also an infringement of copyrights and
trademarks of various businesses and other organizations. Online content
needs to be protected and hence Intellectual Property Rights and Cyber
laws cannot be separated.
In cyberspace, sometimes one person makes a profit by using another
person’s creation without the owner’s consent. This is a violation of
privacy, and it is protected by IPR. We have certain laws to avoid violation

5. Copyright Infringement:
Copyright protection is given to the owner of any published artistic, literary, or scientific work
over his work to prohibit everyone else from exploiting that work in his name and thereby gain
profit from it.
When these proprietary creations are utilized by anyone without the permission of the owner, it
leads to copyright infringement. If copies of any software are made and sold on the internet
without the permission of the owner or even copying the content from any online source, these
all are examples of copyright infringement.
Copyright Issues in Cyberspace :
1. Linking –
It permits a Website user to visit another location on the Internet. By simply clicking on a word
or image on one Web page, the user can view another Web page elsewhere in the world, or
simply elsewhere on the same server as the original page.
Linking damages the rights or interests of the owner of the Linked webpage. It may create the
supposition that the two linked sites are the same and promote the same idea. In this way, the
linked sites can lose their income as it is often equal to the number of persons who visit their
page.

6. 2. Software Piracy –
Software piracy refers to the act of stealing software that is lawfully shielded. This
stealing comprises various actions like copying, spreading, altering, or trading the
software. It also comes under the Indian copyright act.
An example of software piracy is downloading a replica of Microsoft Word from
any website other than Microsoft to avoid paying for it as it is a paid software.
Piracy can be of 3 types:
1. Soft lifting
2. Software Counterfeiting
3. Uploading-Downloading

7. 3. Cybersquatting –
Cybersquatting means unauthorized registration and use of Internet
domain names that are similar to any business’s trademarks,
service marks, or company names. For example, let us consider
Xyz is a very famous company and the company hadn’t created a
website yet. A cybersquatter could buy xyz.com, looking to sell the
domain to the company Xyz at a later date for a profit. The domain
name of a famous company can even be used to attract traffic and
this traffic will help cybersquatters earn a lot of money through
advertising.
When more than one individual believes that they have the right to
register a specific domain name, then this can lead to a Domain
Name Dispute. It arises when a registered trademark is registered
by another individual or organization who is not the owner of a

8. Trademark Issues in Cyberspace :
Trademark means a mark capable of being depicted diagrammatically and
which may distinguish the products or services of one person from those of
others and will embody the form of products, their packaging, and combination
of colors. A registered service mark represents a service. Trademark
infringement refers to the unlawful use of a trademark or service mark which
can cause ambiguity, fraud, or confusion about the actual company a product or
service came from. Trademark owners can take the help of the law if they
believe their marks are being infringed.

9. • With the growth of Cyberspace and technology advancements, copyright and
trademarks are not limited to the usual intellectual property alone but have
spread to intellectual property rights over the internet.
• Cyberspace is becoming a hub for intellectual property rights infringement.
Several practices by the cyber site operators resulted in the violation of
intellectual property rights and various other rights of other website operators. It
has become crucial that people are aware of the illegal usage of their websites
and webpages.
• International conventions and treaties have provided various laws to protect
infringement of IPRs online which are helping e-commerce and e-businesses to
grow. However, the Information technology Act does not provide any provisions
in respect of cybercrimes related to IPR, cyberstalking, cyber defamation, etc.
• Also, the Indian Trademark Act, 1999 and Copyright Act, 1957 are silent on
issues on online Trademark and Copyright infringement. Though computer
programs are protected under the Copyright Act, 1957, it does not provide
remedies for cyberpiracy.

10. Pune Citibank MphasiS Call Center Fraud
US $ 3,50,000 from accounts of four US customers were dishonestly transferred to bogus accounts.
This will give a lot of ammunition to those lobbying against outsourcing in US. Such cases happen all
over the world but when it happens in India it is a serious matter and we can not ignore it. It is a
case of sourcing engineering. Some employees gained the confidence of the customer and obtained
their PIN numbers to commit fraud. They got these under the guise of helping the customers out of
difficult situations. Highest security prevails in the call centers in India as they know that they will
lose their business. There was not as much of breach of security but of sourcing engineering
The call center employees are checked when they go in and out so they can not copy down numbers
and therefore they could not have noted these down. They must have remembered these numbers,
gone out immediately to a cyber café and accessed the Citibank accounts of the customers.
All accounts were opened in Pune and the customers complained that the money from their accounts
was transferred to Pune accounts and that’s how the criminals were traced. Police has been able to
prove the honesty of the call center and has frozen the accounts where the money was transferred.
There is need for a strict background check of the call center executives. However, best of
background checks can not eliminate the bad elements from coming in and breaching security. We
must still ensure such checks when a person is hired. There is need for a national ID and a national
data base where a name can be referred to. In this case preliminary investigations do not reveal that
the criminals had any crime history. Customer education is very important so customers do not get
taken for a ride. Most banks are guilt of not doing this.

11. Baazee.com case
CEO of Baazee.com was arrested in December 2004 because a CD with objectionable
material was being sold on the website. The CD was also being sold in the markets in
Delhi. The Mumbai city police and the Delhi Police got into action. The CEO was later
released on bail. This opened up the question as to what kind of distinction do we
draw between Internet Service Provider and Content Provider. The burden rests on
the accused that he was the Service Provider and not the Content Provider. It also
raises a lot of issues regarding how the police should handle the cyber crime cases
and a lot of education is required.
The following section provides a selection of actions taken against file-sharing Web sites
and P2P services in the Asia/Pacific region, focusing on Australia, China, Japan and South
Korea.
1. In Australia’s largest copyright infringement case, three university students received
criminal sentences for running a Web site called MP3/WMA Land, which offered more than
1,800 pirated songs for download. In light of their age at the time and the fact that they
never profited from their actions, the court warranted 18-month suspended sentences for
two of the students and an additional fine of US$5,000 for one of them. Moreover, one
student and a third participant were given 200 hours of community service.

12. 2. Reportedly, China has become a leading exporter of counterfeit and pirated goods to the
world. The U.S. industry estimates the value of counterfeit goods in China at US$19 billion to
US$24 billion, with losses to U.S. companies exceeding US$1.8 billion a year. The severe piracy
problems derive from a combination of cultural, historic and economic factors and are further
aggravated by inconsistent, weak enforcement by officials. File-sharing Web sites and networks
such as Jelawat and Kuro have been developing rapidly, too. The distributors of P2P software
claim that file-sharing falls within the private use exception to copyright, but the Supreme
People’s Court of China rejected this interpretation. Increasingly, copyright owners and right
organizations are challenging file-sharing Web sites on copyright infringement claims.
3. The Beijing No 1 People’s Court ruled in April 2004 that the Web site chinamp3.com violated
the IP rights of Hong Kong-based entertainment companies Go East Entertainment and Sony
Music Entertainment (Hong Kong), and ordered the site to pay US$19,000 in damages. The suit
concerned the unauthorized distribution of MP3 music files. The defendant argued that he had
merely provided links for download and not a direct download service, and therefore should not
be held responsible for the IP rights violations. According to observers, the court’s ruling may
prove to be a significant development in the nascent field of Chinese copyright enforcement in
the digital age.

13. 3.Syed Asifuddin and Ors. v. State of Andhra Pradesh and Anr.[4]
Facts: The subscriber purchased a Reliance handset and Reliance mobile services together under the
Dhirubhai Ambani Pioneer Scheme. The subscriber was attracted by better tariff plans of other service
providers and hence, wanted to shift to other service providers. The petitioners (staff members of
TATA Indicom) hacked the Electronic Serial Number (hereinafter referred to as “ESN”). The Mobile
Identification Number (MIN) of Reliance handsets were irreversibly integrated with ESN, the
reprogramming of ESN made the device would be validated by Petitioner’s service provider and not
by Reliance Infocomm.
Questions before the Court: i) Whether a telephone handset is a “Computer” under Section 2(1)(i) of
the IT Act?
1.ii) Whether manipulation of ESN programmed into a mobile handset amounts to an alteration of
source code under Section 65 of the IT Act?
Decision: (i) Section 2(1)(i) of the IT Act provides that a “computer” means any electronic, magnetic,
optical, or other high-speed data processing device or system which performs logical, arithmetic, and
memory functions by manipulations of electronic, magnetic, or optical impulses, and includes all input,
output, processing, storage, computer software or communication facilities which are connected or
related to the computer in a computer system or computer network. Hence, a telephone handset is
covered under the ambit of “computer” as defined under Section 2(1)(i) of the IT Act.

14. (ii) Alteration of ESN makes exclusively used handsets usable by other service providers like TATA
Indicomm. Therefore, alteration of ESN is an offence under Section 65 of the IT Act because every
service provider has to maintain its own SID code and give its customers a specific number to each
instrument used to avail the services provided. Therefore, the offence registered against the petitioners
cannot be quashed with regard to Section 65 of the IT Act.

15. A website called www.sony-sambandh.com enabled NRIs to send Sony products
to their Indian friends and relatives after online payment for the same.
In May 2002, someone logged into the website under the name of Barbara
Campa and ordered a Sony Colour TV set along with a cordless telephone for
one Arif Azim in Noida. She paid through her credit card and the said order was
delivered to Arif Azim. However, the credit card agency informed the company
that it was an unauthorized payment as the real owner denied any such
purchase.
A complaint was therefore lodged with CBI and further, a case under Sections
418, 419, and 420 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 was registered. The
investigations concluded that Arif Azim while working at a call center in Noida, got
access to the credit card details of Barbara Campa which he misused.
The Court convicted Arif Azim but being a young boy and a first-time convict, the
Court’s approach was lenient towards him. The Court released the convicted
person on probation for 1 year. This was one among the landmark cases of Cyber