Supreme Court urges Centre to criminalise digital arrest, calls for law on deepfakes
New Delhi, July 28
The Supreme Court on Tuesday urged the Union government to define "digital arrest" as a standalone criminal offence with stringent punishment, while also stressing the need for a law to tackle the growing menace of deepfakes and other emerging online crimes.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana observed that where a court forms a prima facie opinion against an accused based on cogent material, authorities should be empowered to freeze the person's assets pending investigation.
Justice Bagchi highlighted the increasing threat posed by deepfakes and stressed the need for legislative measures to define and regulate such emerging forms of online offences.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the Centre is already working on a draft legislation that would comprehensively address digital arrests, deepfakes and similar cyber-enabled crimes.
"There is a draft bill which is coming up... It will take care of digital arrests, deepfakes, etc," Mehta submitted.
Appearing for the Union government, Attorney General R Venkataramani informed the Bench that an Inter-Departmental Committee (IDC) is finalising a comprehensive report examining existing legal and procedural gaps in addressing such cybercrimes.
Venkataramani also said that the CBI is currently probing around 20 major digital fraud cases involving losses of Rs 10 crore or more, while other cases are being investigated by the respective State police forces.
The bench said it will pass a direction in the case on Wednesday.
Last year, the apex court took suo moto cognisance of incidents of digital arrest scams, where fraudsters impersonate law enforcement agencies or judicial authorities to extort money from citizens, particularly senior citizens.
The top court had, in a previous hearing, observed that the fabrication of judicial orders bearing forged signatures of the judges strikes at the very foundation of the public trust in the judicial system, besides the rule of law.
It had said such action constituted "direct assault" on the dignity of the institution.
The bench was earlier told that nearly Rs 3000 crore has been swindled by fraudsters through such scam arrests.
The apex court had said that coordinated efforts between the central and State police are required to unearth the full extent of the enterprise involving forging judicial documents, extortion, robbery of innocent people, most importantly, the senior citizens.
The bench took suo moto cognisance of a complaint to the apex court by a senior citizen couple who have been defrauded of their life savings through a digital arrest scam last week.
The 73-year-old woman from Ambala alleged that scammers used forged Supreme Court orders to confine her in a digital arrest and extort more than Rs. 1 crore.
She had claimed that the fraudsters produced a fake order purportedly issued by a Supreme Court judge.
The apex court had issued notice to the Union of India through the Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the CBI through its Director, Principal Secretary, Department of Home, and SP Cyber Crime at Ambala. It also asked the Haryana government and SP Cyber Crime, Ambala to file the status report of the investigation taken place so far.
— ANI
Reader Comments
As someone who works in tech, deepfakes are terrifying. The fact that the Supreme Court is pushing for a law is a good sign, but we need to act fast. These scams are going to get worse with AI. I hope the draft bill includes strong penalties for creating deepfakes meant to defraud or harass.
Finally, some concrete action! My grandmother almost fell for one of these "digital arrest" calls last year—they said she had a parcel with drugs and would be arrested. She was so shaken. The scammers are clever and prey on fear. I appreciate the court's suo motu cognisance, but we also need better public awareness campaigns. Laws alone won't help if people don't know what to look for. 😔
I'm pleased the court is taking a proactive stance, but I'm a bit skeptical about the pace. The government says they're working on a draft bill—how long will that take? Meanwhile, more people are getting scammed. Also, freezing assets pending investigation is a good tool, but it needs safeguards to prevent misuse against innocent people. Let's hope the CJI's direction tomorrow speeds things up.
This is a global issue, but I'm impressed with how proactive the Indian judiciary is being. The coordination between central and state police is crucial—these scams often cross borders. Let's hope the law is robust and enforced quickly. Senior citizens deserve protection.
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