Besides keeping the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act 2006 in effect, the government has decided to enact a cyber security law to ensure strict punishment for the offenders of cyber crimes.
The law will permit maximum 20-year sentence for ‘cyber-terrorism’ and arrest of the suspects without a warrant.
Policemen can take any necessary measure and even break open the doors and windows of the suspects to seize their computers, the draft of the proposed Act says.
If anyone commits a cyber crime outside the country, he/she can be brought under the country’s jurisdiction, the draft adds.
If any international crime is committed online, it will be considered as cyber-terrorism, according to the draft.
The draft also says that a controller will probe in any part of the country considering the threat for internet service infrastructure.
A person committing cyber crime will be sentenced to maximum 14-year imprisonment or fined maximum Tk 10 million or both.
The draft of the Cyber Security Act 2015 has recently been finalised after debates were raised over the ICT Act.
The new Act also suggests formulating a National Internet (Cyber) Security Organisation for the sake of Bangladesh’s sovereignty, security and integrity, friendship with foreign countries and others.
However, the draft does not have any rule how the organisation will be formed.
Tahmina Rahman, director of Article 19 (Bangladesh and South Asia) told Prothom Alo the way the draft has been crafted created new worries.
Tahmina fears the Act may shrink freedom of expression more online and urges all to suggest reviews of the draft after evaluating it.
The ICT ministry assigned Rajshahi University associate professor Zulfiqar Ahmed for preparing the draft.
The new law will be supplementary of the ICT Act 2006, Zulfiqar told Prothom Alo.
The draft of the Cyber Security Act 2015 has been published on the website of ICT ministry for evaluation by all quarters.
The draft suggests a minimum five-year jail for the offenders who will harm the network of anyone’s computer without prior permission, erase or distort data or send electronic message with ‘materially wrong’ information in a bid to cheat a person.
Several crimes in the draft have been mentioned as cyber-terrorism. If someone commits cyber-crime, s/he will get maximum 20-year jail or minimum four-year imprisonment.
If a friendly nation falls in security troubles for a cyber crime, it will be considered as cyber-terrorism.
If someone tries to obstruct an international organisation in conducting its activities, it will also be considered as cyber-terrorism.
If anyone tries to enter the network of another person or organisation or try to infect virus in the system, it will be considered as cyber-terrorism.
The draft has kept passage for trying foreigners besides individuals and organisations.
The cases under Cyber Security Act are proposed to be cognizable and non-bailable.
If an organisation is found guilty, its owner, CEO, director, manager, secretary or other representative will be punished, the draft says.
According to the draft, taking photographs secretly and publish them without permission will be considered as crimes. Imprisonment of maximum 10-year has been proposed for such crimes and hacking.
Source: Prothom-Alo
