USE OF ABUSIVE LANGUAGE IN SOCIAL
MEDIA:LEGAL LIABILITY
Sunidhi Chaudhry*
While social media allows anybody to express themselves and
communicate with a big audience, it has also become a forum for harsh
behaviour, abusive language, cyberbullying, and personal attacks, toxic,
unpleasant, obscene, menacing, insulting, and despise for one's own identity.
However, determining whether or not a comment or a post is abusive remains
difficult and time-consuming, and most social media businesses are actively
exploring for more efficient alternatives. This can be automated to help detect
abusive comments, save websites, enhance user safety, and improve online
arguments.
Social media has caught the imagination of india
No wonder , then , that Indians are among
the most active on such platforms . The mobile revolution has further ensured
that social media through various applications and devices .
There has been a rapid rise in the number of internet users in the
past few years and so has increased the number of social media users around the
world. We can now access many things with just a click . With this improving
accessibility of social media networks and internet facility to every
individual there is an equivalent increase in the crimes on social media
platforms that include social bullying and social abuse .
We require a lot of manners and integrity to
maintain the quality if social media but there is no such kind of education
that is being given to the people. We see a lot of controversial fights that
start just because of social media abuse but people instead of reporting it to
the legal authorities take revenge and this is where starts a chain of social
media abuse .With an amid rise in the internet users the laws of country didn't
match the pace that can cope up with the rising crimes on social media. Abusing
on social media can be of many types that range from mere use of foul language
to disrespecting the individual and even to circulation of personal things on
social media. Every country around the world is facing the issue of use of
abusing on social media but because of a lot of social media users and easy
accessibility of internet it becomes very difficult to find the culprit.Thus it
has been a safe haven for the violators. The anonymity that social media
ensures to the violators makes the subject even more complex. Social media is a
mirror of society. The cause for the offences should be carefully studied and
responded to by society with the connected work of people and the justice
delivery mechanism. Occasional controversies are subsumed over a period, and
thus these offences are being largely normalised. Justice delivery mechanisms
appear to be very complex and inaccessible to women and the marginalised when
it comes to offences related to social media. Owing to the technological
complexity associated with cybercrimes, evidence collection and investigation
are very complex and it’s often impossible for the agencies to hold the
perpetrators accountable before law. There was section 66a of IT Act which
worked to curb the the social bullying but Supreme Court held that act
unconstitutional and abolished that act.The repeal of S.66A does not however
result in an unrestricted right to free speech since analogous provisions of
the Indian Penal Code (IPC) will continue to apply to social media online viz.
Intentionally Insulting Religion Or Religious Beliefs (S. 295A), Promoting
Enmity Between Groups On Grounds Of Religion, Race Etc. (S. 153A), Defamation
(S. 499), Statements conducing to Public Mischief (S. 505), Insulting The
Modesty Of A Woman (S 509), Criminal Intimidation (S 506), Sedition (S124-A),
etc. People can still ask for legal aid to counter social media abuse but they
are not aware of the rights they have.
IT ACT 2000
The information technology Act which was enacted in the year 2000
to regulate and deal with the issues arising out of the section 66A of the IT
Act has been enacted to regulate the social media law india. This section
clearly restricts the transmission posting of unwanted messages and spam
requests on social media platforms like facebook , Instagram etc. Further the
law is against these activities. It also avails " fundamental right to
freedom of speech and expression ".
Example of IT Act 2000 (sec.66A) case law
Shreya singhal and
ors.
Vs.
Union
of india AIR 2015 sc 1523
It was held that Supreme Court struck down section 66A of the IT
ACT ,2000 related to restrictions on online speech , as unconstitutional
On grounds of violation the freedom of speech guaranteed under
Article 19 (1) (a) of the constitution of India .
The Supreme Court also read down the section 79 and rules under
the section. It was held that online intermediaries would only be obligated to take
down content on receiving an order from a court or a government authority .
It ACT 2000
The Act provides a legal framework for electronic governance by
giving recognition to electronic records and digital signatures. It also
defines cyber crimes and prescribes penalties for them. The Act directed the
formation of a Controller of Certifying Authorities to regulate the issuance of
digital
Social media
Social media is changing the face of domestic violence by creating
more opportunities and
private channels for abuse to take place .
It is also being used as an evidence in bullying , stalking , and
domestic abuse .
Cyber stalking
It is the use of the internet or other electronic means to stalk
or harass an individual , group
or organization; it may include false accusations ,defamation,
slander and libel .
Conclusion
With the amid technological explosion it
becomes very difficult for a single individual to spread awareness about social
media abuse but as responsible citizens it becomes our duty to teach everyone
around us to use social media with morals and integrity , it is our duty to
help the government in countering the increasing cases of social media abuse .
It will take time but we along with the government can make this happen and
there will be very few cases of social media abuse in the near future if we
take this responsibility together .
* Student of ICFAI
university
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