The Issue of Jurisdiction in Cyberspace

1934 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: History of the internet

Q) What is cyberspace? How can jurisdiction be assumed in cyberspace?

Introduction

“Cyberspace” is a term which is now frequently used among people. Through the advent of computers and especially the internet, our very lives have changed dramatically. Now starting from acquiring information to complex online transactions involving billions of dollars have become possible due to the cyberspace.

The term “Cyberspace” was used for the first time by William Gibson in his book “Neuromancer” written in 1984. He defined cyberspace as the consensual hallucination felt daily by the billions of legitimate operators. He envisioned cyberspace where all the computers, people and information would be linked through global computer network.

One of the main issues which were confronted in relation to cyberspace was the issue of “jurisdiction”. The arousing of such a problem was owed mainly to the unique nature of the cyberspace, that is, its virtual nature. Traditional concept of “jurisdiction” encompassed with it the notion of well defined physical boundary which is absent in case of cyberspace.

Adding to it was the problems relating to, four interconnected elements of private international law, like the choice of law, jurisdiction, court’s option of declining jurisdiction and recognition and enforcement of decree.

Meaning of Cyberspace

Oxford dictionary defines Cyberspaces as “the notional environment in which communication occurs over computer network”. Merriam Webster dictionary defines cyberspace as “the online world of computer networks especially the internet”.

The word “cyber” refers to cybernetics which means in Latin means to steer which represent the notion “to govern”. It emphasizes on the navigation through space of electro...

... middle of paper ...

...ation devices, the cyber world is increasingly being connected to the lives of not just the elite class but also of the countless millions of people. Today internet and social media is not a luxury but has become the very necessity of human lives.

Regarding the issue of jurisdiction, many issues arise like in cases of acts which are illegal in one country but are legal in the other, enforceability of jurisdiction, multiplicity of jurisdiction, identification of the perpetrator etc.

In order to solve it, we will necessarily has to assume that cyber space is an extension of the physical world. In such case it will be easier to apply the laws and assuming jurisdiction also will be possible.

A s far as cyberspace law in India is concerned the enactment of the Information Technology Act is one such step towards solving the various issues which arises in cyber space.

Show More
Related

  • Nils Christie's Criticism Of The Canadian Court Justice System

    840 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1977, Nils Christie wrote the essay, “Conflicts as Properties”, in which he discusses the four problems that occur within the western legal system. The four problems that affect the legal system in four ways is that the courts are always located in areas that people may not have easy access to locate, the courthouses are challenging to find your way around, the parties are irrelevant to much of the proceedings and the proceedings makes conflicts between the actual parties involved turn into conflicts between the State and the parties 2.

    Read More

  • Roper V Simmons Case Study

    1474 Words  | 3 Pages

    There continues to be a growing debate to this day over the use of international law in the Supreme Court, and even though the case of Roper v. Simmons and Justice Kennedy, are nearly a decade old, they are both frequently

    Read More

  • Hacker Crackdown

    1754 Words  | 4 Pages

    In this book Sterling discusses three cyberspace subcultures known as the hacker underworld, the realm of the cyber cops, and the idealistic culture for the cyber civil libertarians. At the beginning of the story Sterling starts out with discussing the birth of cyberspace and how it came about. The Hacker Crackdown informs the readers of the issues surrounding computer crime and the people on all sides of those problems. Sterling gives a brief summary of what cyberspace meant back then and how it impacted society, and he investigates the past, present and future of computer crimes. For instance he explains how the invention of the telephone led to a world that people were scared of because the telephone was something that was able to let people talk to one another without actually being in the same area. People thought that it was so strange and so different because they didn’t understand all of the information behind it. Back then people thought of the telephone as a tool that allowed others to talk to them in a way that was so personal yet impersonal. Sterling then goes on to explain how “phone phreaks” played such an important part in relating the telephones to computer crimes and how they were so closely related back then.

    Read More

  • The Matrix

    1061 Words  | 3 Pages

    Works Cited The Matrix. Larry Wachowski, DVD, Warner Brothers, 1999; Bruskman, Amy. "Finding One's Own in Cyberspace" Composing Cyberspace Edited by Rich Holeton, San Fransisco: McGraw Hill, 1998, 171-180 Rheingold, Howard. " The Heart of the Well" " Composing Cyberspace Edited by Rich Holeton, San Fransisco: McGraw Hill, 1998, 151-163

    Read More

  • Jurisdiction And The Elements Of The Extraterritorial Jurisdiction

    1640 Words  | 4 Pages

    The presumption is that a state jurisdiction is territorial and if each State has jurisdiction over its own territory, consequently, other States do not have jurisdiction over those affairs in line with the international law principles of non-intervention and sovereign equality of States . In fact, territorial jurisdiction is universally recognized. However, as Ryngaert points out, jurisdiction is not only linked with sovereign and is no exclusively of domestic concern (Ryngaert, p. 7), making reference to the “extra-territorial

    Read More

  • International Relations

    2631 Words  | 6 Pages

    ...th 2001). Roth argues that the concept of international jurisdiction is not a new idea but was exercised by the US government in the 1970 after an aircraft hijacking. Also the war crime courts established after the end of World War II exercised international jurisdiction. In fact the Geneva Convention states that is a person regardless of their nationality should be brought before the court of any state in which that person has committed grave breaches of law and convention. Roth states that the concept of international jurisdiction is not a new one but that only in recent years have states been willing to act on universal jurisdiction and go after criminals of the international community regardless of their stating or power within the international community. Roth believes in the ability and authority of international organizations and institutions (Roth 2001).

    Read More

  • Superiority of the International Court of Justice

    2819 Words  | 6 Pages

    The lack of automatic international compulsory jurisdiction renders ICJ inferior. Therefore the argument that referring to this court as the ‘World Court’ implies it is superior; an international equivalent of a national supreme court is null and void. Generally a supreme court is the highest ranking court. Its ruling is not subject to further review and therefore the disputing parties ha...

    Read More

  • Is International Law Really Law?

    1727 Words  | 4 Pages

    International law is a body of legally binding rules that are suppose to govern the relations between sovereign states. (Cornell Law School) In order to be a qualified subject, a state has to be sovereign. To be considered sovereign the state needs to have territory, a population, and a government that is recognized or legitimized to most other states. In the more modern explanation of international law now can include the rights and obligation on intergovernmental international organizations and even individuals. Examples of an international organization would be Greenpeace or the United Nations and an example of an individual would be war criminals, a leader of a state that violated human rights during a time of war. When a dispute arise and cannot be solved amongst the two actors involved they can turn to the U.N. to arbitrate and to the International Court of Justice, one of many courts within the U.N. to find a resolution to their problem. The International Court of Justice’s main task is to help settle legal disputes submitted to it by states and...

    Read More

  • Public International Law

    1772 Words  | 4 Pages

    Public International law International law contains of rules and principles, which preside over the relations and communication of nations with each other. International Law that is in most other countries referred to as Public International Law concerns itself only with questions of rights among more than a few nations or nations and the citizens or subjects of other nations. In dissimilarity, Private International Law deals with controversies among confidential persons, natural or juridical, arising out of situations having important association to further than one nation. In current years the line up connecting public and private international law have became more and more doubtful. Issues of private international law may also associate issues of public international law and numerous matters of private international law nave considerable meaning for the international group of people of nations. International Law consists of the basic, classic concepts of law in nationwide legal systems, status, property, responsibility, and tort. It also includes substantive law, procedure, process and remedies.  International Law is rooted in receipt by the nation states, which comprise the system. Customary law and conventional law are primary sources of international law.  Customary international law results when states trail convinced practices usually and time after time out of an intelligence of legal responsibility. Lately the customary law was codified in the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. Conventional international law derives from international agreements and may obtain any appearance that the constricting parties have the same opinion upon. Agreements may be complete in admiration to any substance except for to the leve...

    Read More

  • The Lotus Case: The Case Of The Permanent Court Of International Law

    1681 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Lotus case garners attention due to the fact that it was among the first cases dealing with whether jurisdiction was assumed in accordance with principles of international law. While the Lotus case was heard in the context of criminal jurisdiction over a collision in the high seas, the Lotus principle has been applied in a variety of other cases in varying contexts. For this reason, the judgment of the Permanent Court of International Justice is critiqued for specifically answering only the question in the special agreement as the continued application of the Lotus Principle as a general principle in other contexts such as anti-trust regulations may lead to ambiguous results.

    Read More

  • CyberCrime: Preventing the Horrific Crimes on the Internet

    1424 Words  | 3 Pages

    In today's society, many aspects of crime committed on a regular basis. Civilians take advantage of people all the time using online resources such as a fraudulent website requiring credit card information to get a free monthly trial. Other examples of cyber crimes are online chatting website, full of predators or websites needing a downloadable program that contains a hacking virus. Sadly, there are many cases of cyber crime all over the internet. The acts of cyber crimes are considered violent acts like any other. Every day citizens are constantly losing money and being victimized due to these fraudulent activities. Cyber crime, including fraud, identity theft, stalking, and hacking, is a growing problem which can be prevented by taking the proper precautions.

    Read More

  • Subjects of International Law

    1121 Words  | 3 Pages

    In any kind of legal relations, subject always play an important role, and it is one of the signals to determine the relation that pertaining the adjustment of any legislation system. International law is a legislation system that is a set of thousands of documents from various sources. The research about the subjects is necessary since it helps to find out the source of law, which relation pertains the adjustment of law. The subjects of international law include sovereign states and analogous entities, intergovernmental organizations, the individuals, and multinational corporations.

    Read More

  • Ethical and Legal issues in ICT

    863 Words  | 2 Pages

    The consistent use of information and communication technology (ICT) in modern world enables us for countless opportunities for individuals, institutions, business organisations and scientists, but it also raises difficult ethical and legal problems. In particular, ICT helped to make societies more complex and thus even harder to understand. The use of ICT has led to changes in concepts: ownership, buying and selling, right to possession, theft, justice in the distribution of resources and access rights. During the nineties, the internet has grown into all business segments resulting in a large number of questions running. It has been noted that during those time period there has been merging of computers, telecommunications, and media which is further emphasized by the emergence of new issues and strengthening old ones.

    Read More

  • Internet Essay - Online Anonymity and Cyberspace Crime

    2068 Words  | 5 Pages

    The 90's internet boom gave rise to new ways of writing in through access to cyberspace. What used to be printed or handwritten on physical surfaces such as paper, cardboard, or bulletin boards has changed to 0's and 1's, bits and bytes of digitized information that can be displayed thru the projections of computer screens. Moreover, the internet has made the process of publishing one's works, writing letters, or chatting with one another much easier and convenient for everyone around the globe. The internet became a universal tool, giving much freedom and flexibility to the users; it gave them opportunity to deliver their thoughts with little or no restrictions. Since it's impossible to regulate all cyber-activities, internet users are often unrestricted by the normal laws or authorities that would set boundaries around the various online transactions. More importantly, the fact that a net user can take on different identities in cyberspace brings about several ethical and social issues. These anonymous and unrestrictive characteristics of cyberspace often permite abusive users to easily involve themselves in serious cybercrimes such as cyberstalking, cyber-rape, and cyber-harassment through chatting services, emails, cyber communities, and other online communication.

    Read More

  • CyberCrime

    2979 Words  | 6 Pages

    Cybercrime is a global issue plaguing the world. The dictionary defines cybercrime as “crime conducted via the Internet or some other computer network”(Merriam-Webster). The definition remains very broad because the word “cyber” is defined as “relating to the culture of computers, information technology, and virtual reality.” Due to the growing number of people gaining access to the internet, rapid development of technology, and the globalization of the world, more of the world population is becoming susceptible to involvement in cybercrime – whether it be as a victim or a criminal. Cybercrime involves different levels of the world on both the victim and criminal side, from an individual citizen, to small groups, businesses, and the government, to the countries of the world.

    Read More

More about The Issue of Jurisdiction in Cyberspace

Open Document