IT Bill has no bytes for hacking websites

IT Bill has no bytes for hacking websites
NIRMALA GANAPATHY

NEW DELHI, JULY 22: An investigation by the CBI's cybercrime cell has revealed that there are websites which provide software to access credit card account numbers and other information that promotes hacking.

However, the agency will not be able to take action against the culprits even after the Information Technology Bill comes into force on August 15.

Sundari Nanda, superintendent of police with the Cyber Crime Unit, at a seminar on Cyber Law and the Police revealed that they had found two sites, Hackshack and Indian Hackers Club, hosted on the VSNL server which encourage and give information about hacking.

According to Nanda, Hackshack carries software for generating credit card numbers. The Cyber Crime Cell team said that when they fed the numbers of their own credit card numbers, they were shocked to find that the software generated the correct information.

Visa, Mastercard, American Express and other credit cards could be accessed through this software, according to the unit. The website also has tools to hack Hotmail, Yahoo, Usa.net and other portals. The site has also declared cyberwar against Pakistan and urged Indian hackers ``to nuke Pakistanis from the Net''. The site also has a list of Pakistan internet providers' addresses.

However, this method of disseminating information does not come under the purview of the Information Technology Bill, according to Nanda. The Information Technology Bill in Section 66 states: ``Whoever with the intent to cause or knowing that he is likely to cause wrongful loss or damage to the public or any person destroys or deletes or alters any information residing in a computer resource or diminishes its value or utility or affects it injuriously by any means, commits hacking.''

According to the Cyber Crime unit, displaying information on hacking on a site is not covered in the Bill.

Another website pinpointed by the special unit was the Hackers Club of India. Nanda said that the website carried statements like: ``Hacking Satyam is fun, fast and easy.'' This website also gave instructions to hack into a system.

At the seminar, the cyber unit also identified several websites which had been hacked in recent times. Those included the ones belonging to The Asian Age, Parliament and the Department of Electronics.

The agency also identified Dr Nuker of the Pakistan Hackers Club. He has hacked the department of electronics and is propagating ``freedom for Kashmir'' and is considered to be the biggest ``cyberterrorist'' in the subcontinent.

The cyber crime cell was set up in September 1999.

Cyberloot

Other grey areas in the IT Bill are no ordinances dealing with:

Theft of Internet hours

Overlapping of criminal and non-criminal offences

Cyber-stalking and harassment

No suitable provisions on misused credit card number